By Steve Oko, Umuahia
Eligible voters in Umuahia, Abia State, on Friday expressed anger and disappointment over their inability to collect their Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) on the opening day of nationwide collection, following the absence of Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) officials at some designated collection centres.
At Ugba Primary School Umuahia, no INEC staff was sighted at the centre when Vanguard visited around 2pm.
Similarly, when our correspondent visited School Road Primary School, Umuahia, at about 2:42 pm, no INEC official was sighted at the centre.
Enquiries, however, indicated that the officials who had earlier arrived for the exercise had left.
Some prospective voters, who said they had made repeated trips to the centre, accused INEC of frustrating their efforts to obtain their PVCs ahead of the 2027 general elections.
One of them, Mr Innocent Odoenelam, a resident of World Bank Housing Estate, Umuahia, said he rushed to the centre after hearing a radio announcement that the cards were ready for collection, only to be told that officials had closed for the day.
Odoenelam, who said he arrived at about 2:30 pm, described the experience as discouraging, especially as the official closing time was 3 pm.
He urged INEC to ensure that its personnel remained at designated centres throughout the stipulated hours, lamenting that the difficulty of registering and collecting PVCs could discourage eligible voters from participating in elections.
“I feel heavily disappointed because I left a lot of things I should be doing to rush down here to pick up my PVC. I feel discouraged,” he said.
Odoenelam, however, vowed to return on Monday because he was determined to vote.
Another voter, Mr Francis Egwuibe, said he had visited the centre as early as 8:30 am but left after waiting beyond 9 am without seeing any official.
He said he returned in the afternoon, hoping to collect his card, only to discover that the officials had departed.
Egwuibe questioned why INEC personnel could not remain at the centre throughout the announced collection period, considering the time and transportation costs incurred by voters.
He called on the commission to properly educate its staff on their responsibilities, alleging that the situation raised questions about the conduct of the exercise.
Similarly, a female voter, Chioma Njoku, accused INEC of treating prospective voters as though they had no value, warning that such experiences could discourage people willing to participate in the electoral process.
The frustrated voters urged INEC to improve its arrangements and ensure that eligible citizens could obtain their cards without unnecessary hardship.
At St Stephen’s Primary School, INEC staff who came for the PVC distribution were said to have closed for the day when our correspondent visited around 3:18pm.
When contacted, INEC spokesperson in Abia, Mr Victor Abraham promised to revert after necessary enquiries but had yet to as at the time of filing this report.
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