INEC recovers 700 PVCs in Benue

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has recovered over 700 Permanent Voters Cards (PVCs) in Benue State that were collected by proxy.

The Resident Electoral Commission (REC) in the state, Nentawe Yilwatda, said the cards were not given to their rightful owners.

Yilwatda made the disclosure during INEC’s interaction with newsmen and Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) at the weekend in Makurdi.

He said the discovery of the PVCs came to fore during the commission’s mass campaign into Benue’s rural communities, stressing that people of a particular village had complained of not receiving their PVCs.

He said after thorough investigation, it was discovered that the PVCs were signed for by proxies.

The REC added that many PVCs were deceitfully collected from their owners in places like Ushongo Local Government Area.

“We discovered that where some political parties have their weakness, they mop up the cards,” the REC said.

Yilwatda, therefore, urged the people to stop surrendering their PVCs for alleged validation or in exchange for fertiliser.

He said the commission had set up a committee that would work out modalities for those displaced from their homes and others living at Internally Displaced Peoples (IDP) camps to vote during the forthcoming elections.