A Magistrate Court in Sokoto State has sentenced one Nasiru Idris to one year imprisonment over illegal possession of 101 Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs).

This is just as the operatives of the Kano State State Police Command arrested a man who was found to be in possession of 367 PVCs.

The National Commissioner and Chairman, Information and Voter Education Committee, Festus Okoye, disclosed this via a statement issued on Saturday.

Okoye, who noted that the police arrested some individuals found to be in illegal possession of voters’ cards in some states in the last couple of weeks, stated that the suspect has been charged to court.

He added that INEC is pursuing his prosecution.

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Okoye noted that the electoral umpire will continue to pursue all violators of the Electoral Act and ensure their diligent prosecution.

Speaking on the collection of PVCs across the country, he stated that INEC will release a date and the detailed procedure for the immediate collection of voters’ cards nationwide.

The INEC official said the commission has developed a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) to make the collection of PVCs hitch-free.

“The commission appreciates the patience and understanding of Nigerians, especially those who registered as voters or applied for transfer/replacement of their cards from January to July 2022.

“In making the cards available for collection, the commission is also working to ensure that the process is hitch-free,” Okoye added.

The Star