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Tag: CVR

  • PVC: INEC Announces July 31 as CVR Deadline

    PVC: INEC Announces July 31 as CVR Deadline

    The Independent National Electoral Commission has announced a new deadline for the Continuous Voter Registration exercise as July 31, 2022.

    This is contained in a press release signed by the National Commissioner and Chairman, Information and Voter Education Committee of INEC, Festus Okoye, on Friday.

    According to the statement, the extension was as a result of “the judgement delivered by the Federal High Court on Wednesday 13th July 2022 in which it dismissed the suit filed by the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) which is seeking an extension of the exercise beyond 30th June 2022”, which affirmed that “INEC is at liberty to appoint a date of its choice to suspend the CVR, provided it is not later than 90 days before the date fixed for the General Election as provided in Sec. 9(6) of the Electoral Act 2022.”

    The commission explained that it complied with an interim court injunction pending the determination of the substantive suit and continued the CVR beyond its initial deadline of June 30.

    It said it had, therefore, extended the deadline for a period of 15 days.

    Following the Federal High Court judgement, which, according to INEC, had removed all legal encumbrances, the commission decided that it was extending the deadline of the voter registration exercise by another two weeks until Sunday, July 31, 2022.

    The statement partly read, “In compliance with the interim injunction of the Court pending the determination of the substantive suit, and in order to enable more Nigerians to register, the Commission continued with the CVR beyond 30th June 2022. For this reason, the CVR has already been extended beyond 30th June 2022 for a period of 15 days. With the judgement of the Federal High Court, all legal encumbrances have now been removed.

    “Accordingly, the Commission has taken the following decisions: 1. The CVR is hereby extended for another two weeks until Sunday 31st July 2022, thereby bringing the total duration of the extension to 31 days (1st – 31st July 2022).

    “2. The exercise has also been extended to eight hours daily from 9.00am – 5.00pm instead of the current duration of six hours (9.00am – 3.00pm) daily.

    “3. The exercise is also extended to include weekends (Saturdays and Sundays) as against only weekdays. We appreciate that the timeframe may be tight for many prospective registrants, but there is a lot that the Commission is required to do under the electoral legal framework in relation to voter registration and compilation of the register that will require time to accomplish.”

    INEC pleaded for understanding, stating that it had a number of activities to carry out in preparation for the 2023 general election, hence the “tight timeframe.”

    The statement added, “For instance, the Commission is required to: 1. Clean-up of the register to remove multiple registrants using the Automated Biometric Identification System (ABIS); 2. Consolidate the national register of voters (existing voters and new registrants) and display same on Polling Unit basis for each of the 8,809 Registration Areas (Wards) across the 774 Local Government Areas nationwide for public scrutiny. This lasts for a period of one week. On the basis of a new projection of 95 million voters, on the basis of 10 voters per page, the Commission has to print 9,500,000 pages for the display; 3. Print millions of Permanent Voters’ Cards (PVCs) for all fresh registrants and applicants for transfer and replacement of lost or damaged PVCs; 4. Ensure that there is ample time for voters to collect their PVCs ahead of the 2023 General Election; 5. Print the final register of voters in triplicate for the 2023 General Election involving a projected 28,500,000 pages for accreditation and display at 176,846 polling units for national elections (Presidential and National Assembly) on 25th February 2023 and State elections (Governorship and State Assembly) on 11th March 2023; and 6. Make copies of the updated national register of voters available to political parties not later than 30 days to the date fixed for the General Election.”

    The statement added that the CVR exercise would continue after the 2023 general election.

    “We appeal for the patience and understanding of all Nigerians as we conclude the exercise which will resume after the 2023 General Election. We observed that following the continuation of the exercise beyond 30th June 2022, many of the registration centres recorded low turnout of prospective registrants.

    “With this two-week extension, we appeal to eligible citizens not to wait until the last few days before they inundate the centres again to register.

    “We appreciate the interest of Nigerians to register and participate in the electoral process and once again reiterate our commitment to credible and transparent elections. This can only be achieved with the support and cooperation of all Nigerians,” it stated.

  • CVR: Over 6m Youths Register as Fresh Registrants Hit 10.4m

    CVR: Over 6m Youths Register as Fresh Registrants Hit 10.4m

    The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has said fresh registration in the ongoing Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) has hit 10,487,972.

    This is contained in a CVR update Quarter 4, WK 11 released Monday night in Abuja.

    According to the report, 8,631,696 registrants had completed their registrations with 3,250,449 via online and 5,381,247 through physical registration.

    The update also said that 4,292,690 male and 4,339,006 female registrants have completed their registration.

    The update also showed that 6,081,456 of the figure are youth while 67,171 are Persons with Disabilities (PWDs).

    According to the update, as of 7am of Monday, INEC had received a total of 23,560,043 applications including applications for voter transfer, requests for replacement of Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs), and update of voter information record, among others.

  • CVR: INEC Deploys 209 machines to 5 South Eastern States, Lagos and Kano

    CVR: INEC Deploys 209 machines to 5 South Eastern States, Lagos and Kano

    The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has deployed additional 209 voter enrolment machines to five South Eastern States, Lagos and Kano to ease the congestion at the ongoing Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) centres.

    The commission disclosed this in a statementy its National Commissioner and Chairman, Information and Voter Education Committee in Abuja on Friday.

    Okoye said that the commission received reports from states indicating an unprecedented surge in the number of citizens that wished to register as voters and the challenges they faced across the country.

    Okoye said that the reports indicated that in some states, sudden turnout of prospective registrants was overwhelming.

    “Consequently, the Commission convened an urgent meeting with all the Resident Electoral Commissioners (RECs) on Thursday, to review the situation so that eligible Nigerians who wish to register are able to do so.

    “The necessity to urgently deploy more voter enrolment machines to ease the congestion at the registration centres was identified as a priority.

    “In response, the Commission has immediately released additional 209 machines deployed mainly to the five South Eastern States, Lagos and Kano where the pressure is most acute.

    “The Commission will monitor the situation over the next few days. Thereafter, it will meet to review the progress of the exercise,” he said.

    Okoye said that every step would be taken and all options would be explored to ensure that eligible Nigerians were given the opportunity to register as voters.

    “The Commission appeals for patience and understanding of all citizens.

    “Every Nigerian who is 18 years of age and above has the constitutional right to register and vote in any part of the country he/she resides without let or hindrance,” he said.

    Okoye said that the sudden surge was an affirmation of the increasing confidence Nigerians have in INEC electoral process.

    He said that the Commission would continue to ensure that the confidence was sustained.

  • Fresh Ongoing CVR Registration hits 8.8m – lNEC

    Fresh Ongoing CVR Registration hits 8.8m – lNEC

    The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) says fresh registration in the ongoing nationwide Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) has hit 8,855,996 on May 2.

    The commission, in its weekly update released for Quarter Four, week three in Abuja on Thursday, said that 5,415,619 completed their registration.

    It noted that 2,379,063 did online registration, while 3,036,556 did physical registration.

    According to the update, those who completed their registration included 45,412 Persons With Disabilities and 3,745,129 youths.

    The report also disclosed that at the time of the update, INEC had received 15,789,718 applications for voter transfer, requests for replacement of Permanent Voter Cards and change of voter information record.

    It gave the gender distribution of the applicants as 8,330,813 from men, and 7,458,905 women.

  • CVR: Fresh registration hits 8.56million – INEC

    CVR: Fresh registration hits 8.56million – INEC

    The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has announced new Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) figures.

    The electoral umpire says there were 8,564,512, as at the morning of Monday, April 25.

    The information is contained in the CVR Update for week two of quarter four.

    INEC said 5,111,899 registrants had completed their registrations; 2,228,913 online and 2,882,986 through physical registration.

    The gender of the registrants show 2,537,932 male and 2,573,967 female.

    Also, 3,534,837 of the figure are youths, while 43,153 are Persons with Disabilities (PWDs).

    INEC confirmed 15,071,668 applications for voter transfer, replacement of Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs), update of voter information record, etc.

    7,957,756 were received from male and 7,113,912 from female; 4,120,254 of the applications were from students and 142,807 from PWDs.

  • INEC Raises the Alarm over Fake CVR Online Portal

    INEC Raises the Alarm over Fake CVR Online Portal

    The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has raised the alarm over a fake Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) registration portal in circulation.

    The National Commissioner and Chairman, Information and Voter Education Committee, Mr. Festus Okoye, in a statement yesterday said the attention of the Commission was drawn to a post, which is currently being circulated on social media, about a website for INEC voter registration which is different from the INEC CVR Portal.

    Mr. Okoye revealed the fake portal as https://register.inec-pvc.online/ with shortened URL as https://bit.ly/INEC-PvcReg2021.

    “INEC wishes to totally disassociate itself from this website and any activity carried out on it.

    “The Commission states that it has not accredited any agency or organisation to capture details of intending voters on its behalf.

    “The general public is hereby informed that the INEC Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) online portal remains https://cvr.inecnigeria.org,” Okoye said.

  • A’Ibom Commissioner tasks Council chairmen on CVR

    A’Ibom Commissioner tasks Council chairmen on CVR

    Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs in Akwa Ibom, Mr Frank Archibong has urged Chairmen of Councils in the state to champion the nationwide Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) in their respective councils.

    Archibong gave the charge in a special meeting with the chairmen of the 31 local government areas on in Uyo on yesterday.

    The commissioner urged the chairmen to encourage every one of voting age within their domains, especially the youths, to engage actively in the exercise.
    “There are no better positioned persons to simplify the ongoing PVC registration process than the local government council chairmen and other leaders at that level.” Archibong said.

    He stressed that the first critical step of participating in governance was to get a voter’s card that enables them determine who governs them and how they are governed.
    He said the aim of the meeting was to notify council helmsmen on the need to resume CVR exercise in their different local government councils.

    The commissioner expressed optimism that Akwa Ibom would be ranked among states with the highest number of those registered, considering the state’s current population density.

    He added that election could only be guaranteed if people were adequately educated on how to use android phones and laptops to key into the INEC’s new model of online registration.

    He, therefore, encouraged the  helmsmen to carry out massive enlightenment campaigns for indigenes and residents of their councils, who were eligible to participate in the 2023 elections.

    “It will be a great disservice to the local populace if council chairmen ignore the need to, not just properly educate their people on the online registration processes, but the need to massively mobilise those who are eligible to be registered.” The commissioner said.

    He further tasked the chairmen to go as far as drafting computer literate persons with android phones and laptops to rural communities to help the rural dwellers who were not conversant with the use of the devices.

    The commissioner lauded support staff from the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in every local government area, saying they staff would help make the process less hectic for indigenes.

    He urged the chairmen to go back to their domains and engage the councilors, traditional rulers, youth leaders and women leaders in the task of creating awareness and sensitising the people on how to go about the online registration.

    Responding on behalf of the chairmen, Mr Iniobong Robinson, Chairman of Esit Eket Local Government Area, commended the commissioner for his lofty programmes for the state.

    He promised they would sensitise eligible voters above 18 years and those who had not been registered to help them in the exercise ,to get their PVCs in the state.

  • Yiaga Africa calls on Nigerians and First Time Voters to register as INEC begins CVR process online

    Yiaga Africa calls on Nigerians and First Time Voters to register as INEC begins CVR process online

    By Mike Oboh

    Yiaga Africa, a civil society organisation, has called on Nigerians and First Time Voters to Register as INEC Resumes the Continuous Voters Registration on Monday, 28 June 2021.

    Cynthia Mbamalu, YIAGA Africa director of programmes, in a statement on Monday, commended INEC for the innovation.

    “The highly anticipated Continuous Voters Registration (CVR) exercise is finally resuming on Monday, 28th June 2021, with the online pre-registration process. To inspire citizens to register as voters, the Independent National Election Commission (INEC) introduced the pre-enrolment via INEC’s CVR online portal from June 28, 2021,” the statement said.

    “This will be the first time in Nigeria’s electoral process where citizens can commence their voter’s registration from their individual spaces of comfort. Citizens who complete their pre-enrollment in the online portal will choose an appointment date for their biometric physical capture, which will commence from 19 July 2021 at INEC offices in the States and Local Government Areas (LGAs). 

    “With the proposals for more technology to be deployed in Nigeria’s election, this CVR process presents an opportunity for the accurate capture of voters’ data and biometrics. It also creates an opportunity for more eligible voters to commence their registration with ease and hopefully reduce the pressure at the physical centers. 

    “Voters registration remains a critical exercise in the electoral process as it is the first determinant of who gets to vote in Nigeria. The right to vote which, gives the people a voice through the ballot, requires citizens to first register as voters. It guarantees the free exercise of the right of citizens to choose their leaders and decide electoral outcomes. 

    “This CVR exercise presents an opportunity for Nigerians, especially young Nigerians, to exercise their power as the sovereign in a democracy by first registering to vote to harness the people’s power during elections. The CVR is a prerequisite for participating in elections in Nigeria because only registered voters will be issued the permanent voter’s card (PVC) to vote. 

    “Registering to vote is both a fundamental human rights issue and a civic responsibility issue.  The CVR  provides an opportunity to transition from any form of agitation or protest to action, as the election remains the legitimate means of transition of political power in a democracy. With the introduction of the online pre-registration process, registration centres will be less congested and the CVR process faster and seamless, especially in the COVID-19 pandemic. Hopefully, more eligible voters, especially young Nigerians, will take advantage of this opportunity to register as voters. 

    “The Continuous Voter’s registration exercise is for citizens who just turned 18 years old or above 18 but have not registered to vote. The CVR is for: registered voters who lost their PVC or whose PVC’s got damaged to apply for replacement of PVC, voters who had issues during accreditation of voters on election day in previous elections, registered voters who want to transfer their voter’s registration to their current location, voters who wish to correct their details in the voter’s register. Registered voters who are yet to collect their PVCs can also visit the INEC offices to collect their PVCs.”

    Yiaga Africa compliments INEC for improving the technology deployed for voters registration to enable a new generation of Nigerians to register seamlessly to vote. 

    The CSO also commend Nigerians for remaining patient and waiting for the CVR process to resume. We congratulate Nigeria’s youth for staying resilient and committed to building Nigeria’s democracy. 

  • 2023: INEC projects 20 million new voters as CVR begins today

    2023: INEC projects 20 million new voters as CVR begins today

    The Independent National Electoral Commission will resume the Continuous Voter Registration ahead of the 2023 general elections today (Monday).

    Recall that the commission had created 56, 872 additional polling units across the country.

    It had also accredited 31 organisations to observe the CVR, while 20 more applications were being processed.

    According to the commission, the registration, which will be carried out continuously for over a year until the third quarter of 2022, will be targeting at least 20 million new voters.

    While threatening to prosecute any citizens who provided false information during the exercise, INEC had said it would be deploying 5346 officials to 2673 registration centres

    The chairman of INEC, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, also said the security of the personnel was very paramount.

    He had said, “We are concerned about the security issues in some parts of the country. The commission would be deploying 5346 officials to 2673 registration centers. What happens if any of these staff is abducted?

    “Our responsibility is to conduct credible election and also protect our staff. The security agencies are also facing challenges and there have been concerns that INEC officials might be target of criminals.”

    He said the commission had also made robust provisions for Internally Displaced Persons who might have misplaced their Permanent Voter Cards due to insecurity.

    The INEC boss stressed the need for massive advocacy and publicity to ensure that citizens are familiar with the new polling units ahead of the 2023 general elections.

    “The success of the exercise depends to a considerable extent on citizens’ awareness through voter education. There will be new registrants, requests for intra-State and inter-State transfers as well as the replacement of voters’ cards as provided by law.