MON, 04 JULY, 2022-theGBJournal| The Independent National Electoral Commission office at Igboeze North Local Government Area, Enugu State, was Sunday, attacked and set ablaze by ‘’unknown asornists’’, the Residential Electoral Commissioner for the State reports.
Festus Okoye, the Commission’s Information and Voter Education Committee, said in a statement today that the State’s Electoral Commissioner Mr Emeka Ononamadu reported the incident, describing the mayhem.
According to him, the arsonists overpowered the security guards at the INEC office, forced their way into the premises and set the building ablaze.
Okoye said, although no casualties were reported, 748 ballot boxes, 240 voting cubicles, office furniture and equipment were destroyed in spite of the best effort of the Enugu State Fire Service deployed from Nsukka, a prominent university town in state.
‘’The Commission is working to ascertain the status of voter registration machines for the ongoing Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) exercise as well as uncollected Permanent Voters Cards (PVCs) locked up in the fireproof cabinent,’’ Okoye added.
He said the incident has been reported the Nigeria Police for investigation and further action.
‘’The attack coming in the middle of the voter registration exercise and other preparation for the 2023 general election, is worrisome,’’ INEC said.
INEC recalled that similar attack occurred at their office in the neighbouring Igboeze South Local Government Area on the 23rd of May 2021. This followed earlier attacks on Udenu LGA office on 13th May 2021 and the State Headquarters in Enugu on 16th May 2021.
The Commission said it has since recovered substantially from these attacks and resumed activities there, including the CVR and the collection of PVCs
Twitter-@theGBJournal| Facebook-The Government and Business Journal|email: gbj@govbusinessjournal.ng|govandbusinessj@gmail.com
