By Ujunwa Okafor
Frustration mounted on Thursday at the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) office in Amawbia, near Awka, as scores of prospective voters endured hours of waiting under difficult conditions to register for their Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs).
Many of the registrants, who arrived as early as 6 a.m., complained of delays, poor communication from INEC officials and inadequate facilities at the registration centre.
A visit to the office revealed a crowd of applicants standing for hours without seats or shelter while waiting to be attended to.
The situation was said to be worsened by the apparent use of only one registration point despite the large turnout.
Several registrants alleged that INEC officials were not providing information about the registration process, leaving many confused and uncertain about when they would be attended to.
“They are not saying anything to the people waiting. Everybody is just standing and hoping their turn will come,” one applicant said.
Some registrants also accused officials of giving preferential treatment to persons known to them while others were asked to continue waiting.
The prolonged delay reportedly forced some applicants to abandon the exercise. Civil servants and other workers who had arrived early in the morning were said to have left for their offices after waiting for hours without being registered.
Others, including elderly persons, women and youths, were seen standing in queues without any provision for their comfort.
A registrant lamented that despite INEC’s publicity encouraging eligible Nigerians to register, the experience at the Amawbia office was discouraging.
“INEC keeps advertising voter registration and encouraging people to come out, but the process here is making things unnecessarily difficult,” the applicant said.
Some of the frustrated applicants alleged that the apparent inefficiencies could be part of a deliberate effort to disenfranchise eligible voters and undermine participation in future elections.
They argued that the slow pace of registration and the hardship experienced by applicants could discourage many citizens from obtaining their voter cards.
However, no evidence was presented to support the allegation.
As the day progressed, many of those who had remained at the centre were youths, while several older applicants and working-class residents had already left.
Concerned residents called on INEC to deploy more registration equipment and personnel to the centre, provide seating arrangements and improve communication with applicants to reduce the hardship being experienced by citizens seeking to exercise their civic rights.
Efforts to obtain comments from officials at the registration centre were unsuccessful as of the time of filing this report.
