In apparent response to complaints by Nigerians about the dearth of Continuous Voters Registration (CVR) centres across the country, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), on Wednesday, said it has increased the numbers of centres from 774 to 1446.
The commission also said it has registered four million Nigerians since it started the exercise in April last year.
This revelation was made during the meeting between the INEC and OurMumuDonDo Movement, led by an ace musician, Charles Oputa, aka Charly Boy, at the National headquarters of the Commission in Abuja.
In attendance from INEC were National Electoral Commissioners (NECs), namely Okechukwu Ibeanu; Muhammed Lecky; May Agbamuche-Mbu, as well as Adekunle Ogunmola and AT Mu’Azu.
The NECs apologized for the absence of the Chairman of the Commission, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, and extended his regret for missing the meeting.
From the side of the Movement were Charles Oputa aka Charly Boy; Deyi Adeyanju, as well as Adebayo Raphael and Goke Ariyo.
In a statement endorsed by the National Publicity Secretary of the Movement, Adebayo Raphael, the meeting was centred on the myriad of electoral challenges currently beleaguering the electoral process across the country.
The statement further said that the commission would begin to distribute in batches, the PVC of those who registered between April 2017 and now, starting from May 2018.
According to the statement, there are 8.30 million uncollected PVCs in the custody of the commission. And Nigerians can transfer their residence from the place of registration to wherever they relocate within the country.
“That the commission is currently under-budgeted-for and underfunded by the National Assembly; and that it is faced with huge technical challenges, financial challenges and manpower challenges.
“It completely frowns against underage voting and that it is committed to ensuring that defaulters are punished according to law. It is under-equipped and ill-equipped,” it stressed.
The statement added that the commission has therefore encouraged Nigerians to report irregularities observed before, during and after elections in order to address them in the most stringent way possible and also take proactive measures to avoid reoccurrence.
“The commission expressed deep concerns over electoral violence and the empowerment of thugs by desperate and unprincipled politicians.
“The commission, however, promised that it will ensure that proactive measures are taken to forestall electoral challenges and also ensure that all necessary and possible steps are taken to make the process of participating in the electoral process less-wearying for Nigerians,” it assured.
OurMumuDonDo Movement had staged a peaceful protest at the commission’s headquarters, on Monday, where it launched a complaint and submitted a letter over series of challenges eligible voters are facing before they could be registered.