Tension is mounting ahead of the Osun governorship election after the PDP and Accord Party accused the state APC of lobbying INEC to release unclaimed Permanent Voter Cards for non-indigenes allegedly mobilised during registration.

The allegation was contained in a joint statement on Sunday signed by Osun PDP Chairman, Sunday Bisi, and Accord Chairman, Victor Akande. Both parties claimed to have “good authority” that the APC is pushing for the bulk release of PVCs to accommodate voters it brought into the state.

The parties reminded INEC that PVC distribution follows a legal template that must be strictly adhered to.

“Under no circumstances should the commission hand over thousands of PVCs to the APC as allegedly being planned. If this is really on the table, the commission should stop it,” they said.

Beyond the warning, the PDP and Accord said they would monitor the PVC process closely, adding that they would demand official data on unclaimed cards for comparative review and insisting that INEC must remain transparent once collection begins.

Linking their concern to recent polls, the parties argued that “unclaimed PVCs were exploited in the Ekiti polls” and warned that any repeat in Osun would be resisted.

The statement places INEC on notice as political activities intensify ahead of the August 15 election. (Sunday Tribune)