Seven civil society organisations (CSOs) have decried the hitches in the ongoing distribution of permanent voter’s cards by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) while demanding extension of the distribution for every day that the INEC is unprepared.

The CSOs comprise of Yiaga Africa, Women Advocates and Research Development Centre (WARDC), Connecthub, Enough is Enough Nigeria, Fixpolitics, Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development (CJID), Kimpact Development Initiative (KDI) and the Electoral College Nigeria.

Reports have it that there have been several complaints emanating from the ongoing distribution of PVC which started on December 12 with many Nigerians complaining they could not get their cards at different centres.

In a joint statement yesterday, the CSOs said, “Nigerians again have had to waste money and time to visit INEC’s offices around the country, only to be told that their cards are not ready and they should come back.

“In addition, in some places where cards are available, registered voters express frustration with the disorderliness and cumbersome nature of the PVC collection process.”

“In other locations, there seems to be extortion as was recorded and shared on Twitter by @samking10011 from the INEC office in Uvwie Local Government, Delta State.”

Following the hitches, the CSOs asked INEC to ensure that its Citizens’ Contact Centre works optimally; create a dedicated desk for civil society organisations, media and citizens to escalate the issues being observed for quick resolution, create a mechanism to report INEC officials engaged in extortion or deliberately sharing misleading information to disenfranchise.

They called for the extension of PVC Collection “for every day that INEC has been unprepared.” (Daily Trust)