The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has extended the deadline for the collection of permanent voter cards (PVCs) for a second time.
The previous deadline was January 29, but the new deadline for PVC collection is now February 5.
According to a statement from Festus Okoye, national commissioner and chairman of the information and voter education committee, the decision was taken after a meeting on Saturday.
The statement explained, “The Commission met today, Saturday, 29th January 2023 a day after its meeting with the Resident Electoral Commissioners (RECs) from the 36 States of the Federation and the Federal capital Territory, Abuja and deliberated on a number of issues, including the reports from RECs on the ongoing collection of Permanent Voters Cards (PVCs) in its 774 Local Government Offices nationwide.”
The statement also noted that the Commission is encouraged by the progress made so far, as more Nigerians have been coming out to collect their PVCs.
In addition, the collection period has been further extended by an additional two hours, starting at 9am and ending at 5pm daily, including Saturdays and Sundays.
INEC also warned persons who have “engaged in double and multiple registration” not to bother visiting any of the Commission’s Offices, as the Commission did not print their PVCs.
The electoral body added, “The Commission will continue to act on all reported cases of sharp practices during the ongoing PVC collection and will ensure that no Nigerian is disadvantaged and all those that carried out valid registration have an opportunity of collecting their PVCs.”
