7 days to polls: PVC now sells for N10,000

Despite the huge campaign against vote-buying by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the National Orientation Agency (NOA), some Nigerians, across political party divides, are yet to desist from the illegal act, checks by Saturday Telegraph have revealed.

However, those involved in the dastardly act are no longer going by direct vote buying as witnessed in the previous elections. This time, the new method adopted is through the purchase of the Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) from individuals willing to sell.

Though the method is not entirely new, as it had been used before, it is not as open and notorious as the direct system of vote-buying. In the open system, a voter is directly paid at the polling unit after voting for the party paying the fee, while the indirect system allows a voter to sell off his right to vote before the Election Day.

New Telegraph, February 9, 2019

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