Claim
The chieftain of the All Progressive Congress (APC) Party, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu during his address to the women leaders of the Party who paid him a visit at Abuja, encouraged voters to obtain new PVCs, claiming that their PVCs has expired.
Conclusion
This claim is false. Eligible Nigerians are entitled to register only once. Once a name appears on the National Register of voters, it stays there permanently.
Full Text
Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, a chieftain of the ruling All Progressives Party (APC) and 2023 presidential aspirant during his address to the women leaders of the Party who paid him a visit at Abuja, encouraged asked voters to obtain new PVCs.
“Take one family member, two family members, knock on all doors and make sure that the new registration… Because they may not announce to you on time. The PVCs you have has expired. Yes!
“You need to spread it to various local government and wards at each levels. No matter how difficult it is. To me, I look at it closely and you look at other elections being held, you will see that it’s diminishing because those cards (is) expired. It’s mandatory that you go and register to vote and achieve your aspirations. May God bless you and bless Nigeria.” he said.
This statement which made its rounds on the internet and across social media platforms aroused response from the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), who beckoned on Nigerians to disregard claims by the Presidential Aspirant that the Permanent Voters Cards (PVC) have an expiry date.
Verification
According to the Chief Technical Adviser to the Chairman of INEC, Prof. Bolade Eyinla said Tinubu’s statement is incorrect. He said “The PVC issued to all previously registered voters remains valid. This kind of statement will certainly push eligible voters to register more than once thereby creating the problem of double and multiple registrations.”
Speaking against double registration, The Chief Press Secretary to INEC Chairman, Rotimi Oyekanmi, warned that in fact, double registration is an offence under our laws. Eligible Nigerians are entitled to register only once. Once a name appears on the National Register of voters, it stays there permanently…
Similarly, in an apology address to Nigerians and the INEC, spokesman of the Presidential Aspirant, Tunde Rahman spoke on his behalf as he explained that Tinubu mistakenly used the word expireinstead of stating the cards may have to be updated.
Rahman further stated that immediately upon being apprised of this, Asiwaju apologised for the incorrect statement and felt sorry for any confusion it may have caused.