INEC Extends PVC Collection, Declares Full Readiness For Osun Poll

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has declared full readiness for the Osun State Governorship Election scheduled for August 15, 2026, assuring stakeholders that all critical logistical, technological and operational arrangements have been concluded.

The Commission also extended the deadline for the collection of Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) to Friday, July 31, 2026, in a bid to encourage more eligible voters to participate in the election.

INEC Chairman, Prof. Joash Ojo Amupitan, SAN, announced the extension on Wednesday at the Osun State Governorship Election Stakeholders’ Forum in Osogbo, where he said the Commission was fully prepared to conduct a free, fair, credible and peaceful election that would reflect the will of the people.

Amupitan disclosed that 322,822 newly registered voters, representing 62 per cent of the total number of new registrants, had collected their PVCs.
He also announced that INEC would conduct a mock accreditation exercise on Saturday, August 1, across 12 selected Local Government Areas in the state to test the functionality of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) ahead of election day.
Earlier, the Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) for Osun State, Mrs Oluwatoyin O. Babalola, described the stakeholders’ meeting as the final major engagement before the election and outlined the Commission’s level of preparedness.

Babalola said the number of registered voters in the state had risen from 1,954,800 to 2,339,233.
She disclosed that all 3,763 BVAS devices required for the election had been configured and fully charged, while 1,328 backup machines had been provided to cater for contingencies.

According to her, non-sensitive electoral materials had already been distributed to the various Local Government Areas, while sensitive materials were being secured at the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in Osogbo.

She added that the training of ad hoc election personnel would commence on July 31 and run through August 9.
Also speaking, the Supervising National Commissioner for Osun State, Prof. Kunle Ajayi, described the election as a critical test of Nigeria’s democratic credentials.

Ajayi said INEC had invested substantially in logistics, voter education, personnel training and technology to strengthen transparency and credibility in the electoral process.

He warned political parties and their supporters against inflammatory rhetoric, voter intimidation and vote buying, stressing that anyone found violating the Electoral Act would face the full weight of the law.

The National Commissioner also urged security agencies, the media and civil society organisations to maintain professionalism and impartiality before, during and after the election.

The forum featured an interactive session during which stakeholders raised concerns and sought clarifications on election logistics, security, BVAS deployment, PVC collection, voter accreditation and other aspects of the electoral process.

Responding to the concerns, Amupitan assured the participants that the Commission had put adequate measures in place to deliver a peaceful, transparent, free and credible governorship election on August 15.

Following the stakeholders’ engagement, the INEC Chairman led National Commissioners, members of the Commission’s management team and other senior officials to a meeting with members of the Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES).

The meeting focused on security arrangements and inter-agency coordination ahead of the Osun governorship election.