The Independent National Electoral Commission has announced that nationwide collection of Permanent Voter Cards will begin on Friday, October 9, 2026, ahead of the 2027 general elections.
INEC Chairman, Prof. Joash Amupitan, disclosed this on Monday at a strategic workshop for media executives held in Abuja by the commission in partnership with Development Alternatives Incorporated and the Nigerian Guild of Editors.
The announcement comes as the commission said Nigeria’s National Register of Voters had surpassed 103 million following the latest Continuous Voter Registration exercise.
Amupitan said more than 10.6 million Nigerians had submitted applications during the three phases of the CVR.
He also disclosed that INEC had concluded the public display of the Preliminary Register of Voters, which allowed citizens to raise claims and objections, as well as the final Automated Biometric Identification System cleanup of the register.
According to the INEC chairman, the commencement of PVC collection would be a major step as the country prepares for the 2027 elections.
He said the commission was focused on delivering an electoral process driven by transparency, technology and credibility.
Amupitan also said INEC would continue to improve the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System and the INEC Result Viewing Portal, with the aim of ensuring that legitimate votes are properly recorded and publicly accounted for.
“The ultimate arbiter of electoral integrity is public trust,” Amupitan said.
He called for stronger cooperation between INEC, media organisations, civil society groups and other stakeholders involved in the electoral process.
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The INEC chairman said the commission was willing to engage with editors, respond to operational concerns and provide timely information in order to close communication gaps that could create room for misinformation.
He urged “newsrooms to establish digital fact-verification desks and pledged that INEC would provide editors with direct access to verify field incidents, logistical developments and security reports in real time.”
Amupitan also proposed a “sustained editorial feedback mechanism between INEC and the Nigerian Guild of Editors to review operational progress and resolve emerging challenges throughout the 2027 election cycle.”
INEC urges media to provide accurate PVC information
The Director of the Voter Education and Publicity Department, Mrs Victoria Eta-Messi, identified misinformation and disinformation as major challenges affecting citizens’ participation in elections.
She called on media organisations to work with the commission in providing Nigerians with accurate and timely information, particularly ahead of the commencement of PVC collection.
Commission seeks 24-hour fact-checking system
The Chief Press Secretary to the INEC Chairman, Mr Adedayo Oketola, said the workshop was designed around three major objectives.
He explained that the first was to rebuild institutional trust through open communication between INEC leadership and media organisations.
The second, he said, was to tackle information disorder and improve fact-checking processes.
Oketola said INEC wanted “seamless 24-hour fact-verification loops between newsrooms and INEC so that speed would not come at the expense of accuracy.”
He said the third objective was to encourage shared responsibility among the media, civil society organisations and electoral institutions through ethical reporting, conflict-sensitive journalism and civic education.
‘Verification is a two-way street’
The Executive Director of the Centre for Media and Society, Dr Akin Akingbulu, said Nigeria was entering a crucial phase with the 2027 elections approaching and PVC collection set to begin.
He noted that electoral information was already influencing public conversations across traditional and digital media platforms.
Akingbulu said editors had a significant responsibility as custodians of information within the electoral ecosystem.
Referring to calls for editors to verify information, guard against deepfakes and avoid publishing unofficial election results, he said, “Verification is a two-way street.”
He added, “Verify before you amplify.”
NGE seeks balanced election coverage
The President of the Nigerian Guild of Editors, Mr Eze Anaba, described the workshop as timely given the country’s preparations for another general election.
Anaba said credible elections involved more than voting, stressing that citizens also needed confidence that their votes would count and that electoral institutions would conduct their duties fairly and professionally.
He urged editors to prioritise accuracy, fairness, balance and public interest when reporting the 2027 elections, while calling for improved access to reliable and timely information from INEC.