Prof. Francis Ezeonu, Imo Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) of INEC on Thursday, announced the resumption of the voter registration exercise in 24 Local out of 27 Local Government Areas of the state.
Ezeonu, who made the disclosure while briefing journalists in Owerri, said the exercise was still suspended at Njaba, Orsu, and Ihitte Uboma Local Government Areas of the state because of insecurity.
He advised people from the affected areas to register in any other convenient area, adding that arrangements had been made to distribute their cards at the state office.
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The REC further disclosed that 7,145 out of the 16,511 voters, who registered using the Automated Biometric Identification System were declared invalid because of dual registration.
He, therefore, appealed to voters not to duplicate their registration, adding that the permanent voter’s cards (PVC) do not expire.
He urged those, who had lost their PVC to come along with a court affidavit for issuance of a replacement, warning that any attempt to do multiple registrations would amount to an electoral crime.
He also advised prospective voters to take advantage of the fourth quarter of the registration exercise which commenced on April 11 before it would end on June 30.
He added that the online portal would be shut down midway into the quarter to allow sufficient time for all online pre-registrants to go for the biometric capture before June 30.
The REC further announced that the commission had finished the processing of the registration data for the first and second quarters of the current voter registration exercise.
He added that PVCs of those, who registered in the first and second quarters were ready for collection as well as those who registered from 2011 to 2018.
He also said the schedule of activities as published by the commission for the 2023 general elections would continue to run concurrently with the continuous voter registration exercise. (NAN)
