Eligible citizens who turned out for the ongoing Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) exercise in Awka, Anambra State capital, have called out the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) over what they described as their unpreparedness to prosecute processes ahead of the 2027 General Elections.
The frustration of the intending voters, who came out on Tuesday to the INEC headquarters in Awka to obtain their Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs), stemmed from the very slow pace of the exercise.
During the visit, it was observed that only one machine and one person were on the ground, attending to over 100 people who were given numbers.
Our correspondent also saw unregistered voters and other categories of persons in large numbers, most of whom expressed dissatisfaction with the whole process.
According to Mr. Nnamdi Obi, who came to transfer his voter’s card to his country home, his unhappiness stems from the fact that INEC, during its sensitization programs, had assured citizens that the process would be seamless.
He also expressed worry that the INEC appears not to be fully prepared, considering that only one official was designated to attend to a large number of people who turned out to be registered.
“I feel those handling this process aren’t well-prepared. There would have been up to three to five officials seeing to this process if it was well-structured,” he noted.
Another citizen, Chinecherem Ofoma, who came to register for the first time, expressed concern that people have been coming for weeks, yet there’s been no noticeable progress.
He also expressed dissatisfaction with the fact that the aged and elderly ones were also mandated by the situation to sit and wait for hours against their will for the whole process.
“I will say that the situation on the ground is quite appalling- having just one official handling the process, whereas there are more than a hundred persons waiting to be attended to, including the aged and the elderly who have to sit and wait for hours as against their wish, which isn’t proper.
“At some point, we have to wait for like twenty to thirty minutes for the network to be restored, and these things make the whole process tiring and stressful,” he said.
Ofoma believes that law-abiding citizens should be encouraged and aided to become better by the system and not discouraged, warning that the disposition of the INEC is capable of discouraging people from participating.
“When you turn on your radio and television, announcements are still ongoing concerning the collection of PVCs. Yet, when individuals who want to do the right thing come around, the situation on the ground discourages them, and it looks like the structure is against them rather than for them.
“This same scenario prevented me from getting my PVC four years ago, and it’s repeating again. I visited up to four different places just for this same issue and wasn’t still able to get it at the end of the day, which made it impossible for me to vote during the last general elections,” he regretted.
Ofoma urged the government to build on what they already have in place, adding that with this, a better and more positive Nigeria is achievable.
For her part, Mrs. Margaret Ike, who intended to retrieve her lost voter’s card, stated that the one official on the ground is the major challenge and beckoned on the INEC to send more officials so as to hasten the process.
“If another INEC official can be added to the one already working here, it would be a welcome development as it is often said that two heads are better than one,” she noted.
The Resident Electoral Commissioner in charge of Anambra State, Dr Queen Elizabeth Agwu had during a press briefing earlier this year, assured that the INEC had deployed massively across the state to ensure smooth CVR activities.
She urged citizens not to wait until the last minute to obtain their PVCs, warning that INEC may not extend the exercise.
However, regarding the complaints, our correspondent was unable to reach the REC for comment at the time of filing this report.
