INEC Introduces Downloadable PVCs, Plans Full Online Voter Registration

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has announced plans to introduce downloadable Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) for eligible voters who have lost or damaged their original cards as part of reforms designed to modernize Nigeria’s electoral system ahead of the 2027 general elections.
INEC Chairman, Prof. Joash Amupitan, made this known on Wednesday during a meeting with the Director-General of the National Orientation Agency (NOA), Mallam Lanre Issa-Onilu, at the commission’s headquarters in Abuja, where he explained that the innovation is designed strictly for voters who had previously collected physical PVCs but later misplaced or damaged them.
Amupitan clarified that first-time registrants who have never been issued a physical PVC will not be eligible for the downloadable option, stressing that only existing voters with prior cards can access the service.
He further stated that affected voters must formally report the loss or damage of their PVCs to INEC at least 90 days before an election in order to qualify for replacement processing.
The INEC Chairman also revealed that the commission intends to test the downloadable PVC system during the Osun State off-cycle governorship election scheduled for August as part of its pilot implementation strategy.
Amupitan added that INEC is simultaneously developing a fully digital voter registration platform that will allow eligible Nigerians to register online without physically visiting INEC offices for biometric capture, subject to final approval and rollout readiness.
He explained that the technological reforms are intended to improve access to voter registration, reduce disenfranchisement, and make electoral processes more efficient and convenient for citizens across the country.
ADVERTISE WITH US
Do you want to reach your targeted audience and expand your brand’s visibility?
Advertise with Polity Reporters to place your “message” before the right audience.
For advertising enquiries, reach us through:
Email: bandcommunications001@gmail.com
Facebook: Polity Reporters
WhatsApp: 07043810558
“Journalism is what we need to make democracy work.”
“News is what somebody somewhere wants to suppress; all the rest is advertising.”
“Journalism can never be silent: that is its greatest virtue and its greatest fault.”
“The duty of a journalist is to convey the truth as clearly and fully as possible.”
“Good journalism is about results. It is about affecting your community or your society in the most progressive way.”
“Journalism is printing what someone else does not want printed; everything else is public relations.”
“A free press is not a privilege but an organic necessity in a great society.”
“The press was to serve the governed, not the governors.”
“Journalism without a moral position is impossible.”
“The function of journalism is to comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable.”
