The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has announced that it will begin distributing Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) to newly registered voters in Edo State starting Thursday, ahead of the upcoming governorship election. According to a statement released on INEC’s official X handle, the distribution will take place at 192 Wards across the state from August 22 to August 26, between 9:00 am and 5:00 pm daily, including weekends.
After August 26, the collection will shift to INEC’s local government offices across the state, where voters can pick up their PVCs from August 28 to September 8, 2024.
The Edo governorship election is scheduled for September 21, 2024. During the recent Continuous Voters Registration in Edo State, a total of 184,438 voters were registered, which includes 119,206 new registrations, 8,847 inter-state transfers, and 46,171 intra-state transfers.
INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, confirmed during a meeting with Resident Electoral Commissioners that all newly printed PVCs have been delivered to INEC’s office in Benin City and are now ready for collection. He emphasized that PVCs must be collected in person by registered voters and cannot be picked up by proxy.
Prof. Yakubu also mentioned that INEC is preparing to release the final voter register to political parties in Edo State, ensuring transparency in the lead-up to the election. The commission is also making arrangements for the distribution of PVCs in Ondo State, where the governorship election is set for November.
