INEC extends period for PVC Collection
The Permanent Voter’s Card (PVC) collection exercise that was scheduled to end on Friday, 8th February, 2019 has been extended to Monday, 11th February, 2019. This was disclosed by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), in response to complaints by many Nigerians over the challenges encountered with regard to PVC collection. Collection will continue nationwide at the INEC Local Government offices and designated collection centres from Saturday to Monday between 9am and 6pm. After this period, all uncollected PVCs will be recalled by Resident Electoral Commissioner and deposited at the Central Bank until the General Elections are concluded, after which collection of PVCs and the continuous registration of voters will resume.
Release of Final List of Candidates for the Governorship and State Assembly Elections
On Wednesday, 30th January 2019, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) released the final list of candidates who will be contesting the Governorship, State Assembly and the Federal Capital Territory’s Area Council Elections on 2nd March 2019.
No candidate from the All Progressive Congress (APC) was listed for the Governorship and State Houses of Assembly in Zamfara and Rivers States. This is because the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had declared that it will not allow the ruling party in both States to field candidates. In Zamfara State, INEC declared that no primaries were held within the stipulated time which ended on the 7th October 2018, due to the internal wrangling which led to the emergence of two factions, and a flurry of judgements from two separate Courts sitting in Abuja and Zamfara. The Commission opted to obey the order from the Federal High Court in Abuja, which stopped the APC from presenting candidates following the inability of the party to resolve its internal crises on the conduct of the primaries. Similarly, in Rivers State, the disputes between the factions of the party led to a Court ruling declaring the primaries that produced candidates as null and void. However, on Monday, 4th February 2019, the Court of Appeal sitting in Port Harcourt issued an order staying the execution of the earlier order of a High Court, restraining INEC from listing candidates of the APC for the State level elections in Rivers State. This order from the Appellate Court implies that the candidates of the APC in the State may participate in the polls slated for 2nd March, 2019.
INEC Centralises Selection of Returning and Collation Officers
Over the weekend, INEC revealed that it had taken the decision to appoint Returning Officers and Collation Officers for all categories of the 2019 elections. This decision did not however go down well with the Resident Electoral Commissioners (RECs), under whose purview this recruitment process normally falls. In the past, RECs were responsible for the appointment of Returning and Collation Officers for the elections at the ward, Local Government and State levels. As local officials at the State level, they are presumed to have local knowledge about those individuals who can be called upon to handle the collation, and announcement of results effectively.
The decision by the leadership in Abuja was communicated to the RECs in a memo signed by the Secretary to the Commission, Mrs. Rose Oriaran-Anthony, which said in part: “Kindly note that all Collation Officers for the 2019 elections (i.e. RA, LGA, Federal Constituency and Senatorial) and all Returning Officers are to be recruited and posted by the headquarters. Please be guided.”
Buttressing the contents of the memo, National Commissioner, Mr. Festus Okoye said: “INEC decided to centralize the recruitment of the officers in order to know them. We want to know who are Returning officers and Collation Officers.”