Ahead of the 2023 general election, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Tuesday announced that a total of 1,091,157 old Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) are still uncollected by their owners in Lagos state.

The commission also said that after two months, it flagged off distribution of 34,242 newly printed PVCs for new registrants; only 6,382 applicants had come for collection across the state.

Mr. Olusegun Agbaje, the Resident Electoral Commissioner of INEC, made this known at the Stakeholders’ Meeting on Election with leaders of political parties on Tuesday in Ikeja.

Agbaje described the low rate of PVC collection across the 20 local government areas as unimpressive.

This development, he said, puts the state in fifth place nationwide in the number of new registered voters.

He said: “The low rate of PVC collection in Lagos State is worrisome as only 6,382 PVCs out of 34,242 received from the Commission’s Headquarters for the first and second quarters of CVR have been collected by their owners. This is just 18.6 per cent.

"Similarly, for the old PVCs, a total of 1,091,157 are still uncollected by their owners.”

He urged residents in the state to continue to assist the Commission in mobilising the eligible citizens residing in Lagos State that are yet to collect their PVCs to take advantage of the opportunity provided by the ongoing collection of PVCs at the INEC LGA offices where they registered to collect their PVCs.

“As anyone without the PVC cannot vote during any election.”