Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has been charged to investigate its personne unsavoury role in the distribution of Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) in Edo State.
Instead of registered voters in state, some of the officials were alleged to be selling the PVCs to only politicians.
The commission will hold a governorship election in Edo on September 21.
In a petition to INEC chairman, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, a group, Transparency for Electoral Systems Advocacy (TEGA), it asked the commission to take charge of the process.
In the petition made public at the weekend, TEGA accused INEC officers in some local governments of complicity in the sale of PVCs to politicians and called for the withdrawal of the state INEC commissioner and electoral officers from the exercise.
It was titled ‘Petition Against Compromising Electoral Officers (EOs) in Edo State Over Sale of Bulk PVCs To Politicians”.
The group named the some electoral officers in Esan Central local government area as the culprits alongside others across the state.
TEGA saud the conspiracy between INEC staff and politicians could trigger violence and voter apathy in the governorship election.
“Electoral officers popularly referred as EOs in Edo State have been meeting with the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) leaders, a situation that has resulted in the reports on social media platforms that members of the public were being denied their PVCs,” the petition signed by Dr. Philip Edosa-Amadasun, the state coordinator of TEGA declared..
It revealed that, “on Friday, August 23, 2024, EOs in Esan Central local government area were in the Irrua residence of a non-serving PDP Senator.
“We believe that such unholy alliance between the ruling PDP in Edo State and INEC officials is the reason members of the public including the All Progressives Congress (APC) and Labour Party supporters were being denied their PVCs in the recent distribution exercise,” the group said.
TEGA continued: “Members of the public have raised alarm in Esan Central local government area and other local government areas across the state, over their inability to find their PVCs.
“Their PVCs were reportedly handed over to PDP leaders in a conspiracy to rig elections.”
The group made reference to a video circulating on social media, where a lady named Edith in Ikpoba-Okha of Edo South senatorial district, lamented she was denied her PVC as the INEC officials handed bulk PVCs over to PDP leaders.”
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