The Independent National Electoral Commission has brought the campaign for the collection of Permanent Voter Cards to the Calabar carnival in Cross River State.

Addressing commission staff members in Calabar on Wednesday before the start of the carnival, National Commissioner for Electoral Education Festus Okoye said the commission had reached a critical stage in its preparation for the 2023 election.

“We are making the PVC collection available right now, and our visit to the Calabar carnival is part of our lighting program to make sure people collect their PVCs.

“People need to understand that PVC has power. PVC has power. If you don’t have power and potency, people won’t try to buy you.

“Our message to the Nigerian people is that only PVC can change their circumstances. Therefore, those who do not have PVCs have nothing to do in the electoral process. We want to encourage all Nigerians to pick up their PVC and show up on Election Day.

“Our responsibility is to organize free, fair and credible elections. Our loyalty is to the Nigerian people. We have no loyalty to any political party,” Okoye said.

He stated that organizing a credible election was a shared responsibility, adding that “the time has come for us to organize the freest election on the African continent. Let’s go out there and show Nigerians that we have the ability to run a credible election.”

The campaign’s motto is ‘No PVC, don’t vote’.

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