AWKA – Professor Chukwuemeka Onukaogu, Anambra State Resident Electoral Commissioner, said the commission had begun inter and intra transfer of voters’ cards in the state, asking affected voters to visit the commission.
The electoral boss made the announcement in Awka Anambra during a one day stakeholders meeting with political parties in the state, organised by the commission.
He said the commission carried out intra- state transfer on Tuesdays and Wednesdays at its headquarters and inter-state on daily basis at the same venue.
“ We are doing all these to offer electorate who wish to transfer from one state or city to another the opportunity of performing their civic responsibility.
Onukaogu said the commission was serious in creating awareness on collection of Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) by the electorate.
He added that INEC officials would be deployed in four registration centres at a time to ensure proper distribution of PVCs.
He further said that the officials would stay for three days in each of the selected four centres after which they would visit another four, till all the wards were covered.
“We decided to break in to four registration centres to ensure effective coverage and to be able to dictate and handle any lapse that might come up.”
Onukaogu said that the political party leaders and other stakeholders were expected to pass the information to the grassroots for electorate to know the importance of having their PVCs .
A participant, Mr. Obele Chuka, said the meeting was an eye opener as it would be effort in futility, if after campaigns and preparations, the electorate did not turn out to vote.
He called on the electorate to utilise the opportunity to collect their cards as the only instrument to chose candidates.
Also Mr. Emma Uduonu, the state Chairman of the Progressive Peoples Alliance (PPA), commended the commission for organising the forum.
Oduonu said that the early start of the programme would encouraging the electorate to pick up their PVCs, adding that it was a good sign that the commission would perform better in subsequent elections.
He promised that PPA would play its part in educating its members on the importance of collecting their cards.
Mrs. Oby Okafor, another participant from Advanced Congress of Democrats (ACD), said the forum was a good idea and pledged to sensitise the electorate to the need for them to get their PVCs.
The forum featured questions and answers.
Twenty-three political parties attended the event including APGA, APC, PDP, PPA, KOWA, NCP, APA, ACPN, UDP and UPN.
