Delta declares work-free day for PVC collection

The Delta State government has declared today a work-free day to enable workers travel to their  wards to collect their permanent voter cards.Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan who gave the directive during the demonstration of use of card readers by INEC officials in Asaba, said most Nigerians resident in difficult terrains were apprehensive of the use of […]

The Delta State government has declared today a work-free day to enable workers travel to their  wards to collect their permanent voter cards.
Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan who gave the directive during the demonstration of use of card readers by INEC officials in Asaba, said most Nigerians resident in difficult terrains were apprehensive of the use of card readers.
He urged INEC to win the confidence of voters on the viability of the card readers, saying the commission had a duty to perfect its practicability and sensitize voters on its importance and use.
According to the governor, it is alarming that over 400,000 permanent voter cards are yet to be collected in Delta State and there is need for the people to be encouraged to go for their PVCs.
Earlier, the state’s Resident Electoral Commissioner, Mr. Aniedi Ikowak, said the card readers were created in an effort to improve  accreditation for the elections.
He said the card reader was an improvement on what INEC did in the 2011 elections, assuring that the commission was determined to ensure free, credible and acceptable elections.
Ikowak said over 5,800 card readers would be used in the 3,800 poll units in the state, adding that 4 to 5 card readers would be used in each polling unit depending on the number of voters and all card readers have been configured for each polling unit.