President of CBCN, Archbishop Lucius Ugorji, stated this in his welcome address at the 2nd Plenary meeting of the group in Auchi.

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According to Ugorji, only a credible election would produce responsible leadership for the people. He said: “As Edo State prepares to go to the poll we pray for a free, fair and credible election. We urge all vying for office to shun violence and electoral malpractice. May the votes of the electorate be respected. May the electoral umpires be non-partisan.”

The Catholic bishops spoke even as a group, the Transparency for Electoral Systems Advocacy, TEGA, alleged that some officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, in Edo State were currently selling uncollected Permanent Voter’s Cards, PVCs to politicians and called on the Chairman of the commission, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, to investigate the matter.

TEGA, in a petition to the National Chairman, weekend, accused electoral officers in some local governments of complicity in the sale of the PVCs to politicians, adding that the election may be compromised if the illegal activities of the officials were not checked.

In the petition Titled; ‘Petition Against Compromising Electoral Officers (EOs) in Edo State Over Sale of Bulk PVCs,’ to politicians, by State Coordinator, Dr. Philip Edosa-Amadasun, the group, noted that officials of the INEC in Esan Central, Ikpoba Okhai, Oredo, Egor and some other Local Government Areas across the state had been involved in this act despite the fact that the INEC had assured of conducting free and fair elections in the state.

“Electoral Officers popularly referred as EOs in Edo state have been meeting with PDP leaders, a situation that has resulted in the scandalous reports on social media platforms that members of the public were being denied their PVCs,” TEGA stated, that a female electoral officer was at the Irrua residence of a former PDP Senator.

“We believe that such unholy alliance between the ruling PDP in Edo state and INEC officials is the reason members of the public including APC and Labour Party supporters were being denied their PVCs in the recent distribution exercise.

“We saw a viral video on social media where a lady named “Edith Uwadia in Ikpoba-Okha LGA lamented she was denied her PVC while INEC officials were seen giving out PVCs to PDP leaders. Therefore, we urge the Chairman of the INEC to personally take charge of the distribution of these PVCs because as it seems, the Resident Electoral Commissioner in the state has failed in his duties in the state.”