This is going to be a long read..
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The reason for this thread is because of a very important observation me and my friend made in June.
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There is this friend of mine who couldn't collect his PVC before the 2015 elections due to the INEC's usual reasons of "Your own card had not been issued yet... Come today, come tomorrow, come next week.."
Fast Forward to after the elections, they changed their reasons to "We have sent back all the cards to the headquarters in Abuja.. It is no more in the State offices or even in the Local Government offices.."
Theb, Fast Forward again to May 2017..
Registration of voters started again in Anambra..
This friend of mine was arguing us that since he had already registered, he would not register again,, that he would just go there and collect his card..
We started laughing at him, and someone told him that "even if his card was issued at all (which might have been the case),, that it is no more going to get to him.."
He asked Why.? And he was told that his card should be somewhere right now within the northern territory lying useless inside the house of a wrong owner.
At first, I thought they were making a joke with my friend, so I asked them to explain further.
The guy asked me: "Are you the only one that was not aware that INEC shipped all the uncollected PVCs up North and shared them out to everybody there, and the kids even.??"
I got more confused at that point for two reasons..,, and I had to ask these two questions..
1. Why sharing the card to the wrong people in another ward.? The cards are registered to specific wards, so that, even if you are with your own card but you went to the wrong ward, you cannot vote there, so far you are in another ward.. So, it's not possible.
2. What would be the fate of the issued PVCs after elections.?
They laughed at me and gave me the simple answer: "Did you witness the elections in these core north areas.? It was a case of 'show me your card, oya come and vote' "....
Finally, my friend went in June to collect his card at the LGA INEC office, the story of his encounter with the staff at the INEC Office somehow confirmed what my friends told him back then in May.
At the INEC Office, they gave him a form to fill, and to submit a photocopy of his TVC.. He did all that.
After some some clicking and some typing on the computer,, they told him to come back in three months time to collect his PVC, that he is even lucky that his name was in the system.. That some people don't have their names in the system even when they have their TVCs,, and they would have to go through the process of registering again afresh..
He pressed further to know what it was exactly they did on the computer. They told him that they requested for a Reissue.. He asked the person that was operating the system to explain why it had to be a reissue, and to also tell him what happened to the first issue...
The lady directed him to a senior officer who replied him with "Do you want your PVC or Not.?"..
He went back to the lady and tried to inquire from her the reason why it happened that some people do not have their names in the system, but the lady was like: "Mister man, you disturb a lot.. I am done with you.. Come back in three months to collect your card.. I have other people to attend to"....
Blah Blah Blah...
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With such behavior by the INEC staff - where no one can even ask them a simple question and get a simple answer, coupled with the story of "sharing the uncollected cards up north". - One would always ask himself the obvious question: "Can We Trust INEC in the upcoming elections".??