From Yakubu Mustapha, Minna
The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Niger State has condemned the postponement of the dates for the distribution of Permanent Voters Card (PVC) in Niger State by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
This was contained in a press statement issued in Minna yesterday by the party’s Publicity Secretary, Mr Jonathan Vatsa that the situation is even more worrisome to the APC with the discoveries that the particulars of voters in seven wards of Shiroro, Gbako and other Local Government Areas are missing and may not get their PVC.
Vatsa noted that the APC has further discovered no fewer than one million names of voters registered were missing from the lists of those to get the PVC.
“The truth is that the areas excluded from the PVC collection have always been the stronghold of APC in previou s elections in the state” he said.
“The inference now fall in perspective on why in the last Niger East by-Elections some of our supporters could not cast their votes because their names were missing from the voters register”
The APC expressed worries over INEC that there should be Continuous Voters Registration (CVR).
“The pertinent question is what becomes of those who have earlier registered but their names could not be traced on the INEC register?, as such many of our supporters may be disenfranchised before 2015 general elections thereby giving way for rigging and all other manipulations of elections in Niger State were notorious for” the party stated.
“That the APC was not sure of the neutrality of the Resident Electoral Commissioner, Dr Emmanuel Onucheyo who has subjected himself to the whims and caprices of the government in power” Vatsa stated.
The APC publicity secretary added that this has justified their previous call that if a free and fair election is to be conducted in Niger State the Resident Electoral Commissioner in the state must be removed or redeployed to where his material cravings will be tolerated.
