Former Federal Lawmaker Senator Shehu Sani has criticized the disconnect between Nigeria’s high Permanent Voter Card (PVC) collection rates and poor electoral participation, drawing stark comparisons between current and historical voting patterns.
In an interview with Arise TV from 20:32, Sani highlighted the puzzling phenomenon of millions of Nigerians obtaining voter cards but failing to participate in elections, using the 2023 presidential election as a case study. “I still try to go deep down into research to find out why our country people go and collect PVCs, and when INEC comes out with the result, they will say that over 79 million Nigerians have received their own PVCs, and when election time comes, you see Bola Tinubu winning with 8 million, and then Atiku 6.8 million votes, and then Obi 6.1 million votes,” Sani stated.
The former senator expressed bewilderment at the low turnout figures despite widespread PVC distribution. “Then you ask yourself, where are all those people who collected their PVCs?” he questioned. “PVCs are not interior decoration items; they are not souvenirs. When you go to collect them, you should go and vote for leaders who represent you.”
Sani emphasized the critical importance of electoral participation, linking voting decisions directly to citizens’ quality of life and survival. “People need to know that leadership is as important as the life and survival of a nation, because the people you elect or refuse to elect will determine your life, determine the life of your children, and determine whether you will live or not, because leadership has all these components and levels,” he explained.
The former lawmaker drew a compelling historical comparison to illustrate Nigeria’s declining electoral participation relative to population growth. “So, a nation like ours, people have to know you can’t be complaining when you don’t go to vote. If you look at the statistics of people who voted for Shehu Shagari, it is higher than today. Shagari had almost 6 million votes, but our President here is winning election by 8 million votes, 44 years after. At that time, the population of Nigeria was less than 100 million; now we have 230 million,” Sani observed.
He questioned the logic behind collecting voter cards without using them, asking: “Why should people collect PVCs and go home and sit down?”
While addressing potential solutions, Sani rejected mandatory voting laws as a remedy for low turnout. “I do not support a compulsory voting law for all Nigerians, but we should enlighten Nigerians to vote. But compulsory forcing them to go and vote will come with a lot of consequences,” he stated.
The senator offered insight into possible reasons for voter apathy, suggesting that citizens may have lost faith in the electoral process. “And then you ask yourself, why are they not going to vote? Apart from the fact that their refusal to vote enabled those who vote or rig elections to put in the person they want, the point is that perhaps many people have lost interest in the passion to vote people into office if your votes don’t count,” he explained.
Sani concluded by highlighting the financial implications of unused PVCs, noting the substantial public resources invested in their production. “But in the general sense, if you know you are not going to vote, there is no reason for you to go and collect PVCs, because these are very expensive items which were all budgeted for,” he said.
