Four LGAs yet to receive PVCs in Bayelsa – INEC

There is a strong indication that this Saturday’s governorship election in Bayelsa State may suffer some hitches. It was learnt that four out of the eight local government areas of the state have yet to receive their Permanent Voter Cards, following the continuous voters registration conducted by the Independent National Electoral Commission in September. The State Resident Electoral Commissioner, INEC, Mr. Baritor Kpagih, said on Saturday in Yenagoa that efforts so far made to get the PVCs from the INEC headquarters had failed. He said that it took the head of the Information and Computer Technology of the commission in Yenagoa days in Abuja before he was able to get the PVCs for four local government areas. He mentioned the areas which PVCs were ready as Brass, Ekeremor, Kolokuma/Opokuma and Nembe. He said the outstanding LGAs were Ogbia, Sagbama, Southern Ijaw and Yenagoa, adding that they were released in alphabetical order. According to the voters register made available by INEC to the political parties participating in the election, a total of 663, 639 persons are eligible to vote in the governorship election. The breakdown by local government areas shows that Brass has 56,634, Ekeremor, 83,774, Kolokuma/Opokuma, 39,748 and Nembe, 66,384. The breakdown for the remaining four LGAs whose PVCs have yet to be collected showed that Ogbia has 69,253, Sagbama, 79,242, Southern Ijaw, 120,827 and Yenagoa, 139,777. The REC said that over 50,000 PVCs were being expected after the continuous voters’ registration, but only about 14,000 had been collected. He said he had informed the political parties participating in the election of the development, asking them to go back and articulate their position for onward presentation to INEC headquarters. “I asked them to even involve their lawyers, and whatever they come up with, if they say the election should be postponed, I will let the headquarters know,” the REC stated. Some analysts have alleged that the four LGAs their PVCs had been received are the strongholds of the candidate of the All Progressives Congress, Chief Timipre Sylva. Sylva hails from Brass, which they said, has everything in common with Nembe. A lawyer, who did not want his name in print, rationalised that Ekeremor is the LGA of the Director-General of Sylva’s Campaign Organization, Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, while Kolokuma/Opokuma is the LGA of Chief Timi Alaibe, a stalwart of APC. Governor Dickson hails from Sagbama LGA, and he is said have his stronghold in Sagbama, Ogbia and Yenagoa. Southern Ijaw is said to be a battleground which could go either way.