INEC Wants to Disenfranchise Us, Christians in Bauchi Cry Out"

INEC Wants to Disenfranchise Us, Christians in Bauchi Cry Out"
Less than one week to the general election, Christians in Bauchi Local Government Area of Bauchi State, under the aegis of Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) have raised the alarm that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) is aiming to disenfranchise them by cleverly keeping away the Permanent Voters Card (PVCs) from its members.

Addressing a press conference in Jos, the CAN coordinator for Bauchi local government area, Mr Mako Gwamis, who was flanked by about 14 other Christians, said: “Christians in Bauchi LG are facing threat of being disenfranchised if no action is taken to avert the evil plan.”

He said, “Christian dominated areas in the LG like Bayara, Yelwan Tsakanin, Tsakanin Bayara, Gwallameji, Doka, Kagadama, Yelwan-Tudun, Turum, Miri, Yelwan-Makaranta, Rafin Zurfi, Gudum Sayawa, Gudum Hausa, ECWA-1, to mention but a few, having a population of about 10,000 people, who took their time to stand under the sun and registered for the polls, but not up to 2,000 of them have got their PVCs due to INEC deliberate act to make the cards unavailable to their polling units for distribution.”
Gwamis said voters in these areas are asked to travel INEC local government office at Kofar Ran, a distance of about 40 kilometres to obtain their cards. He added that those who could afford the transport fare and travelled the distance only got stranded at Kofar Ran as they did not get the INEC officials to attend to them.

He queried why the distribution of the PVCs in Christian dominated areas had to be taken to a different location from where they registered, adding that the Christians are suspecting sabotage.