The Resident Electoral Commissioner in-charge of Benue state, Nentawa Yelwatda has said that the independent national electoral commission (INEC) has introduced mobile registration units in Benue state to encourage mass participation in the ongoing continuous voter registration.
The electoral commissioner who made the disclosure in a chat with our correspondent in Makurdi Thursday, explained that the introduction of the unit system is one of the strategies adopted by the commission to ensure that more people are captured during the exercise; saying the modify time table of the ongoing registration has commenced in the state beginning from 2nd to 17th August, 2018.
According to the commissioner, the INEC staff will be working from 9am to 5pm each day including Saturdays and Sundays as well as public holidays and called on Benue people especially workers to take advantage of the opportunity provided by the commission to get registered even as he commended the mass media for always projecting the activities of INEC when called upon.
The resident electoral commissioner however, expressed dismay that the high percentage of registrants were yet to collect their PVCs and urged the people of the state to use the remaining days to be part of the exercise; urging those with complaints about the exercise to visit the nearest INEC center for address.
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Our investigation round Makurdi metropolis shows that many residents have filed out at INEC registration centers to be captured as the deadline for PVCs draws nearer. At the LGEA Primary school Wurukum, NKST primary school Wadata, many residents came out from different parts and defied the scotching sun to register and obtain the PVCs preparatory to the 2019 general elections.
In an interview, a Makurdi based media practitioner, comrade John Ahembe Tyough and a generator repairer, Mr. Eze Okafor who were at the centers to be captured explained their readiness to take part in the civic obligations hence the need to obtain the PVCs and urged INEC to create more of such mobile units bears churches and other warship centers to ease the business of capturing and commended the commission’s new incentives.
In their separate remarks, pastor Joseph Inalegwu of the church of Christ Makurdi pledged to mobilize members of the congregation to go for the exercise since it is made less cumbersome by the commission while a leader of a political party, Pius Nyam Stwam of near Agan tall gate Makurdi praise the incentives of INEC but call on it to embark on sensitization campaign for registrants to come out to collect their PVCs ready for the polls next year; accusing political parties of mot doing enough for their followers to collect the existing cards in INEC custody.
The independent national electoral officer for Makurdi local government who was seen monitoring the registration exercise, Mrs. M. Oloko stated that INEC staff were doing their best to capture eligible voters in the area and appealed for patience from members of the public.
