3rd March, 2015
Abiodun Onafuye/Abeokuta
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Ogun state has declared that it has discovered 555 Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) belonging to dead people in the state.
The Commission stated that the PVCs had been set aside, noting that investigation was still ongoing with a view to knowing the actual figure of the people who had registered during the exercise, but are now deceased.
The figure of deceased persons was disclosed on Monday by the Ogun Resident Electoral Commission (REC) Chief Timothy Ibitoye during a press conference held at the Commission’s headquarters in Magbon area, along IBB Boulevard, Oke Mosan, Abeokuta.
Speaking on how the Commission discovered the number of PVCs belonging to deceased persons, Ibitoye explained that, it was discovered shortly after it had displayed the names of those that were yet to collect their PVCs.
According to him, “we are trying to make sure we have correct PVCs distribution. We have gone to all the local government from polling unit to polling unit to write out the names of those who have not collected their cards and during our investigation, they gave us the figure of those who are dead in all the local government areas of the state.
“We got it from our electoral officers and we have put their PVCs aside. That is how we were able to get the figure. We are still collating and by the time we are through, we will let you know the actual figure.
He noted that: “Community leaders also assisted us when they saw the list of those that are yet to collect their PVCs. They identified some of these names as deceased persons,” he explained.
Reacting to the conflicting reports over the registered voters and the number of the PVCs collected so far in the state and as well those distributed, the REC bluntly declared that: “the Commission in the state had received 1,370,340 and had distributed 860,076 PVCs.”
He further clarified the controversy surrounding the correct figure of the registered voters in the state. “The total number of registered voters in the state is 1,795,794 and not 1.829,534 as published by some newspapers.
“If we base the percentage of PVCs on registered voters, we have received 63 per cent, but, if we base it on the figure of the registered voters, it is 47 per cent. We are expecting 425,454 PVCs from Abuja and the PVCs yet to be collected as at date is 510,264,” he revealed.