The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has alleged that some politicians are buying up Permanent Voter Cards and financially inducing voters to harvest their Voter Identification Numbers.
The National Commissioner overseeing the FCT, Nasarawa, Kaduna, and Plateau states, Mohammed Haruna, raised the alarm at an event in Abuja, on Monday.
He stated that the unnamed politicians are trying to rig the forthcoming 2023 general elections, stressing that such politicians are in for surprise.
Haruna, however, warned the electorates to desist from compromising the ownership of their PVCs, saying that anyone caught will be arrested and prosecuted.
The INEC official also said that two persons have been recently convicted for illegal possession of PVCs in Sokoto and Kano states, adding that such an act contravened the Electoral Act 2022.
He said, “We are aware some politicians are more or less buying the PVCs. If you collect the PVC and then you sell it out or allow someone else to have it, you are aiding illegal possession of the PVC which is an offence in our Electoral Act.
Some of you are aware that only recently, INEC managed to convict two people who were found guilty of illegal possession of PVCs in Kano and Sokoto. So, I urge people to connect their PVCs, keep them safely, and make sure that on election day, you go out there and cast your votes because, of course, without your PVC you cannot vote.”
