The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) is considering a policy to withdraw and destroy Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) that remain uncollected for ten years.
This recommendation arose from the commission’s review of the 2023 general elections and is aimed at addressing the persistent issue of unclaimed PVCs, which still number over six million, including cards issued as far back as 2015.
As part of efforts to resolve this backlog, INEC is considering implementing a policy to destroy PVCs that remain uncollected for long periods, starting with those issued in 2015. This move is based on the belief that many of these cards are unlikely to be claimed, and retaining them occupies valuable space in the voter management system.
Despite efforts to ease PVC collection, such as the online tracking system and devolving collection to ward levels, many registered voters still failed to collect their cards. The commission’s review highlighted that while there had been support from civil society organizations (CSOs) to assist voters, the low collection rate remained a significant challenge.
Further, INEC plans to modernize the electoral process, including a proposal to phase out PVCs. With the introduction of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS), voters could potentially use computer-generated slips or credentials downloaded from INEC’s website, reducing reliance on PVCs. However, this would require amending the Electoral Act 2022, which currently mandates the presentation of PVCs for voting.
The proposal to destroy uncollected PVCs has divided political parties. The Labour Party’s National Legal Adviser, Kehinde Edun, supported the idea, stating that the uncollected cards likely result from registration irregularities and that destruction would help declutter the voters’ register.
In contrast, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) expressed concerns that the move could be another attempt by INEC to distract Nigerians. PDP Deputy National Youth Leader, Timothy Osadolor, criticized the idea, arguing that it would waste taxpayer money spent on producing the cards. He suggested that many people had lost faith in INEC’s ability to conduct credible elections, which contributed to the low PVC collection rate.
The New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) also opposed the destruction of PVCs, calling it a waste of resources. They argued that if the owners of the cards are not dead, destroying the PVCs would waste the investment in them.
