Kaduna LG poll: No PVC no voting – SIECOM

The Kaduna State Independent Electoral Commission (KADSIECOM) has reiterated that only electorate with permanent voter’s card (PVCs) would be allowed to vote the in the forthcoming local council chairmen and counsellors poll on May 12. SIECOM’s Head, Voters Education, John Bulus, said this shortly after a dialogue with political stakeholders in Kaduna over the weekend.
He noted that temporary voter’s card (TVCc) would not be allowed because the commission would be using smart card reader during the election.
“If we are talking about credibility of the election, we need to accredit the real voters and the only way to do that is to use the PVC.
“Temporary voter card cannot give us what we want because we are using smart card reader.
This is supposed to give us all the information we need about the voter.
So, no PVC, no voting”, Bulus restated. But in a reaction, Chairman of Labour Party and Conference of Nigerian Political Party (CNPP), Umar Ibrahim Mairakumi said, the electoral laws agreed that, those with TVCs can take part in the election.
“SIECOM is behaving as if it is confused.
To me, they have not put their house in order otherwise they will not come to the public to ridicule themselves.
I wonder why they should come here and tell us that if you don’t have PVC you cannot vote.
“What does the law say? The law said if you have a voter’s card you can vote and that is why we are saying people with TVC should be allowed to vote “We have so many issues concerning the local government elections.
For example with this recession INEC is saying a counsellor N480,000 this is too much.
This payment is extortion.
“Today INEC is saying they have more than 200,000 additional voters in Kaduna state who are holding the TVCs and in the law, there is no where it is stated that if you don’t have the PVC you cannot vote.
You are to have voter’s card, that is what the law said.
“So, what I can tell you is that the opposition is sidelined and we are not been carried along in whatever government is doing and that is why you can see even within the ruling APC, everything is in shambles with a lot of crisis.
So for us we are just watching them But we have been advising them on what to do.
For us we are maintaining the peace.
“But we see compromise with the SIECOM, because in the guidelines given to us, primaries are suppose to end on the 27 of March. But APC conducted its chairmanship primaries on the 29 of March.
So what can you say about that.
“We want the APC disqualified because they were unable to meet the deadline given to them.
We were not given any reason because if it is my party don’t you think they will disqualify us?” But in a swift reaction SIECOM said: “To me what they have raised were not allegations.
Political parties are one of our main stakeholders.
Our role is to conduct elections and the political parties present the candidates.
Earlier, Executive Director, Legal Awareness for Nigeria Women (LEADS-NIG) the organiser of the dialogue, Barr Rebecca Sako-John said, her organisation with support from Christian Aid Nigeria under Voice to the People (V2P) project in Kaduna State brought the critical stakeholders together for the purpose of peaceful LG election.