It was a tale of agony, lamentation and frustration on Monday in Abia State as Voters who registered for Permanent Voter Card (PVC), besieged the Local Government offices of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, to pick their PVCs before the Sunday deadline.
A visit to the INEC office at Adelabu Street, Umuahia North, showed registrants who were seen in clusters struggling for attention at the facility.
There were long queues outside almost every window as people waited patiently for their turn.
Some of the frustrated registrants who spoke expressed disappointment with INEC for the difficulties they had passed through.
They said that despite waiting for long hours they were told that their PVCs were not ready.
One of them, Mr Akoni Iron, said that his name was seen on INEC system but he was told that his PVC had not been printed.
He said he was sad that despite waiting for so long a time, he was not sure if he would ever get his PVC before the deadline.
Another registrant, Ferdinand Egbulefu, said he had gone to Umuagu Primary School and his Ossah Ward respectively but without success and was referred to INEC office at Adelabu Street
He said he had been at the facility since morning till 2:00 pm without any success, lamenting that he might be disenfranchised in the forthcoming polls.
Similarly, an eye-impaired woman who also said she had been around the facility since morning, regretted that her PVC was no where to be found.
”I was here two weeks ago and they said we should fill forms. We did, and today they said we should fill forms again. But they told us they had gone to photocopy the forms.”
She said she would be unhappy if she were denied the opportunity to exercise her franchise at the forthcoming elections.
Ifeanyi Melariri who told our Correspondent that he registered at Abia Line Network office, regretted that his PVC had not been printed.
When contacted, Head, Voter Education and Publicity Enlightenment, INEC, Mrs Rebecca Jim, said that people should be patient with INEC staff as efforts were being made to attend to them.
She regretted that people had to wait until there was rush before coming to pick their PVCs.
Mrs Jim said she was in Aba to monitor the ward collection and received complaints from INEC staff that people were not forthcoming.
She pleaded with the affected registrants to exercise patience. (Vanguard)
