•As 37 RECs meet in Lagos over PVC collection
By Lateef Ibrahim, Abuja
A Magistrate Court in Sokoto State has sentenced one Nasiru Idris to a year in prison after he was found to be in possession 101 Permanent Voters’Cards (PVCs) in contravention of Sections 117 and 145 of the Electoral Act 2002.
Similarly, the Police in Kano State has arrested a man who was found to be in possession of 367 PVCs.
The unnamed suspect has been charged to Court while the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, is pursuing his prosecution.
These were confirmed in a statement yesterday by INEC National Commissioner and Chairman, Information and Voter Education Committee, Barrister Festus Okoye in Abuja.
The Prof Mahmood Yakubu-led INEC, which met at the weekend in Abuja and deliberated on a number of issues, explained that among them (the issues) were the date and procedure for the collection of Permanent Voters’ Cards (PVCs) and the prosecution of persons arrested for illegal possession of PVCs.
According to the statement by Okoye, “In the last couple of weeks, the Nigeria Police has arrested some individuals found to be in illegal possession of voters’ cards in some States of the Federation.
“In one case, the Police has concluded investigation and handed over the case file to the Commission resulting in the successful prosecution of one Nasiru Idris at a Magistrate Court in Sokoto who was found to be in possession 101 PVCs in contravention of Sections 117 and 145 of the Electoral Act 2002.
“He has been sentenced to a year in prison.
“Similarly, the Police in Kano State has arrested a man who was found to be in possession of 367 PVCs.
“The suspect has been charged to Court and the Commission is pursuing his prosecution.
“The Commission wishes to reiterate that it will continue to pursue all violators of the Electoral Act and ensure their diligent prosecution”, the statement said.
The statement explained that following the end of the statutory period for the display of the register of voters for claims and objections, the Commission is determined to make the collection of PVCs as seamless as possible.
According to the statement by Okoye, “A Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) has been developed.
“This will be among the issues to be discussed and finalized at a retreat holding in Lagos from 28th November to 2nd December 2022 involving all the Resident Electoral Commissioners (RECs) from the 36 States of the Federation and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
“At the end of the retreat, the Commission will release the dates as well as the detailed procedure for the immediate collection of PVCs nationwide.
“The Commission appreciates the patience and understanding of Nigerians, especially those who registered as voters or applied for transfer/replacement of their cards from January to July 2022.
“In making the cards available for collection, the Commission is also working to ensure that the process is hitch-free”, it said.
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