PVC registration

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has finally suspended the Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) for Permanent Voter’s Card (PVC) after 13 months.

The CVR resumed in June 2021 to give millions of Nigerians the opportunity to register as new voters ahead of the 2023 general elections and millions turned up.

The registration exercise finally closed on July 31st, 2022 after a dramatic final few weeks, involving a court case to extend it — which was dismissed in favour of INEC. Here are the most important things we learnt.

Nigerian youths are serious

By the time the CVR was suspended, INEC had registered a total of 12.3 million new voters in 13 months.

— 8.8 million of the new voters are young people aged between 18 and 34 years old.

— 4.5 million of total new registrants are students, many of whom are currently affected by the closure of universities due to the strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU).

Nigerian youths are often accused of going missing in the electoral process but the number of young, newly-registered voters may suggest a change in the tide. All that’s left is to receive their PVCs and show up for the elections.

Digital technology makes things easier. Who knew?

For the CVR exercise, INEC allowed new voters to apply online. This enabled applicants to pre-register and book appointments for a later date to complete registration at INEC centres. The online portal remained open for a year and gave many Nigerians a chance to start their registration process from the comfort of their homes.

Like this

The ease of registration was pivotal to getting many people to register early for the process. This speaks volumes about how much more INEC needs to involve the use of technology in the electoral process to make it more seamless. Nigerians want things to be more accessible and we can’t blame them.

Online registrants dozed off

Despite the use of the online portal, a great percentage of Nigerians who started their registration online didn’t complete it. INEC received a total of 10.5 million online applications from new voters, but only 3.4 million completed the process for their PVCs.

It means Nigeria could have seven million more new voters right now if people who began the process online, left the comfort of their homes to complete the biometrics capture at INEC stations. Or could it just be because of the manpower issues INEC failed to address at physical locations?

INEC needs to be protected

Generally, Nigeria has a worrying security crisis on its hands, so it’s no surprise that it also touched INEC and the PVC registration process. Gunmen killed an INEC official during an attack on a centre in Imo State in April 2022. They also warned people to stop registering for PVCs, threatening that there’ll be no election.

The attack resulted in the suspension of PVC registration in the affected area and was one of the black marks on the CVR exercise in a long line of aggression against the electoral process. INEC has suffered 41 attacks spread across 14 states, since 2019, and remains a target for non-state actors.

The government needs to provide more security cover for Nigerians going into the general elections to instill confidence in the process.

The number of new voters still short of expectations

The demand for PVCs ahead of the 2023 elections has been described as unprecedented, but the numbers simply fail to back up the claim.

In 2021, INEC set a target to register 20 million new voters, but the final tally of 12.3 million (61.5%) new voters falls way off that target. It’s also less than the 14.2 million new voters who registered ahead of the 2019 general elections, although that CVR exercise lasted for a longer period — 15 months, as opposed to this period’s 13 months.

The PVC registration process needs to be more effective

Despite INEC’s best efforts, many problems plagued the CVR exercise during its 13-month run. There were periods when centres were overrun by enthusiastic applicants without adequate manpower and resources to deal with them. Many critics have also expressed disdain towards the 13-month timeline of the exercise.

With PVC registration now suspended seven months before the election, tens of thousands of Nigerian youths who turn 18 before the next general elections will be disenfranchised.

INEC’s excuse is that it needs a lot of time to process applications and deliver PVCs to applicants before the elections, but that’s simply not good enough in 2022. The process has to become more efficient to cater to as many eligible Nigerians as possible.

Our message to INEC:

ALSO READ: A Reminder That 2023 Is Not Just About Who Becomes President

Samson Toromade

August 3, 2022

Citizen

2023 Elections, 2023 General Elections, INEC, PVC, PVC registration
The permanent voter’s card (PVC) has become a household name in Nigeria over the past few months. It may be just a regular plastic card but it’s the only tool Nigerians have to choose their leaders. And with the 2023 general elections only eight months away, it’s almost impossible to survive a full 24 hours without hearing about the PVC.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) resumed the continuous voter registration (CVR) exercise in June 2021 for new voters. This allows eligible Nigerians who are 18 and above to register to vote. The CVR also allows those with damaged cards and other card problems to rectify their issues before next year’s polls.

The deadline for the CVR exercise was initially set for June 30th, 2022 but was recently extended without a definite date.

We decided to look at all the important numbers one year since the CVR started. These figures are based on INEC’s update of June 27th, 2022.

8.6 million new voters

A total of 8,631,698 people have completed their PVC registration nationwide since June 2021. They will join the other 84 million voters that were on the register for the 2019 general elections.

6 million youths will vote for the first time

Out of the 8.6 million new voters, 6,081,456 of them are young people between the ages of 18 and 34. This voting demography is followed by 1,748,993 middle-aged new voters between 35 and 49 years of age and 703,968 elderly voters between 50 and 69.

97,279 people who are 70 and above will also vote for the first time.

3.1 million student voters

3,084,924 of the 8.6 million that are fully registered are students who’ll also get to vote for the first time.

4.3 million female voters

The gender distribution of new voters is almost evenly split, but there are slightly more women (4,339,006) than men (4,292,690).

Offline > Online

The CVR started in June with an online pre-registration process, but more people started and completed their registration by going directly to INEC centres. Of the total 8.6 million that completed registration, only 3,250,449 started online. To put that in context, a total of 10,487,972 submitted online applications for PVCs since June 2021, leaving more than seven million yet to complete the process.

Southern dominance

States in the southern region have set the pace in online applications and the number of applications completed over the past year. These are the top five with completed applications:

Delta — 396,900

Kano — 380,582

Bayelsa — 379,438

Rivers — 372,406

Lagos — 371,760

23.5 million online applications in total since 2021

A total of 23,560,043 applications have been submitted on the INEC portal since June 2021. This figure includes applications for new PVCs, transfer of voting location, requests to replace damaged or lost PVCs or requests to update voter information records.

PVC collection

Those who registered between June and December 2021 are already cleared to collect their cards and those who have been registering since January will start collecting their cards in October 2022. Nigerians currently rushing to register for PVC are unlikely to start collecting their cards until January 2023.

Since it’s unclear when CVR will end, you should go to an INEC centre near you (only if you’re eligible, of course), and register to vote.

ALSO READ: Zikoko’s Responsible Voter Starter Kit for 2023 Elections

Samson Toromade

June 30, 2022

Citizen

2023 General Elections, INEC, PVC, PVC registration
The 2023 general elections are less than a year away and politicians have already started hustling to appear on the ballot. Aspirants for public office are buying nomination forms worth millions of naira, making campaign promises and producing painfully hilarious campaign jingles like this:

😭😭😭😭😭😭 pic.twitter.com/8Qhr1B9JAD
— WE THE PEOPLE!!! (@edechiene) April 5, 2022

While the politicians are already setting things in place, statistics are showing that voters are maybe not doing enough to prepare.

To vote in the election, every Nigerian of voting age needs a permanent voter card (PVC). It’s important. You can’t show up to a voting centre with your driver’s licence to vote.

At the end of the 2019 elections, Nigeria had 84 million people on the voters’ register. And when the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) resumed the PVC registration exercise in June 2021, it set a target to register 20 million new voters.

More than nine months into the registration exercise, only 4.4 million people have registered. That’s only 22% of the target set by INEC. More than three million have started their online registration but haven’t completed it yet.

Let’s run down a list of the most common questions about the registration process:

When does registration end?

The ongoing PVC registration exercise will be paused on June 30th 2022. Anyone that hasn’t registered for PVC by then won’t be able to vote in the 2023 general elections. The registration exercise also likely won’t resume until at least 2024.

ALSO READ: How To Register For PVC Online In 7 Easy Steps

What if I need to change my voting centre?

INEC is also still processing other PVC-related issues including change of voting location and requests for new PVCs. You can start that process with an online application here. This will also be paused on June 30th.

What if I can’t register online?

Some people have experienced problems with completing their online registration. This shouldn’t stop you. If you’re affected by this, you can show up at a registration centre close to you to start the process there instead.

ALSO READ: Don’t Fight Me, but This Is Why I Don’t Have a PVC

I have registered but when do I get my PVC?

INEC is yet to start printing PVCs for new voters. The agency has to clean up the registration process to ensure only genuine registrants are added to the voters’ register. When this is completed, INEC will announce the date new voters can start collecting their PVCs.

Why do I need to register for PVC?

Voter turnout in Nigeria’s general elections has been dropping since 2003 even though the voters’ register has been increasing. This is due to a host of reasons including disorganisation, election violence, voter apathy and probably Desmond Elliot.

But despite the disappointment Nigerians feel about the political class, voting at the ballot remains the most effective way for them to determine the future of the country. Getting as many people as possible to register and vote for the right candidates will determine how the country will deal with its many challenges.

This is why it’s important that everyone that’s eligible to vote does so. It’s the part you have to play in the giant machine that is Nigeria.

ALSO READ: Zikoko’s Responsible Voter Starter Kit for 2023 Elections

Samson Toromade

April 10, 2022

Citizen

2023 Elections, PVC, PVC registration