2027: ADC-PCC Urges INEC to Ensure Neutrality, Transparency

The African Democratic Congress Presidential Campaign Council (ADC-PCC) has urged the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to ensure neutrality and transparency in the conduct of the 2027 general elections.

The council also called on the commission to ensure that eligible Nigerians who register as voters are able to collect their Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs), saying registration figures would have little value without corresponding card collection.

The ADC-PCC made the call in a statement issued on Wednesday by its Director of Media and Publicity, Kola Ologbondiyan, in reaction to INEC’s World Press Conference held on Tuesday.

Ologbondiyan said the ADC presidential candidate remained prepared to participate in the 2027 election, provided the process was free, fair, credible and devoid of violence and manipulation.

He urged INEC to demonstrate its independence by resisting any attempt by political parties to influence its decisions or operations.

According to him, the commission should ensure equal access to PVC collection and eliminate administrative bottlenecks that could disenfranchise eligible voters.

“Reading out figures of registration is nothing. What matters is the number of cards actually collected by Nigerians.

“What gives a citizen power on election day is not that his name is in a register somewhere, but that he has his PVC in his hand,” he said.

The council expressed concern over alleged delays and bureaucratic challenges at PVC collection centres, particularly in areas it described as opposition strongholds.

It urged INEC to ensure that no eligible voter was disenfranchised through administrative obstacles, delays or unequal access to voter cards.

Ologbondiyan said the ADC would insist on compliance with the Constitution and Electoral Act throughout the electoral process.

He said the party was monitoring INEC’s activities ahead of the election and urged the commission to maintain its independence.

The council also called on INEC Chairman, Prof. Joash Amupitan, to consider decentralising PVC collection to ward level, extending collection hours and deploying technology to notify voters when their cards were ready.

It further urged Nigerians, particularly first-time voters, not to be discouraged by administrative challenges but to participate actively in the electoral process and collect their PVCs.

Ologbondiyan said the ADC remained committed to a democratic process in which every eligible Nigerian had an equal opportunity to vote and every legitimate vote counted.