At least 1.5 million of the permanent voters’ cards, PVCs have so far been distributed to registered voters in Bauchi State, representing 83.85 percent
The Bauchi state INEC Administrative Secretary Mr Emmanuel Umenger who disclosed this in Bauchi while speaking on the commission’s preparedness for the forthcoming general election informed that the remaining 16.15 percent will be distributed at the wards in the various local government areas of the state.
He said INEC had decided to decentralise the PVCs distributions to ensure that, all registered voters get theirs.
According to Mr Umenger, INEC has started receiving non-sensitive materials such as the ballot boxes meant for the presidential election while those for governorship and other election will be received shortly.
He said,.” INEC in its attempt to fast-track the process of accreditation which is usually burdensome is going to deploy card-readers which are hand-held devices that has the ability to accredit a registered voter within two minutes”
“Once you come to the polling unit with your card, the device will scan it and all the data will show on the screen. It is a very small device that enables the voter to know if he or she has been accredited”
The INEC secretary hinted on some of security measures put in place by the commission to prevent electoral malpractices, saying that the ballot boxes are going to be constituency specific and election results will be announced at polling stations once the votes are sorted out.
” if you have a ballot paper in constituency A for instance, you cannot take that same ballot paper to constituency B to cast your vote. The ballot papers this time around are colour coded and has some security features that are unique to that ward”
“secondly, after the election results are announced at the polling units and copies will be made available to observers, police and party agents” He said
Umenger then urged political parties to send to INEC, ahead of the election, the names of their party agents so that they can be accredited by the commission and nobody can impersonate them.
