•Gunmen attack electoral body’s office, police station in Anambra, kill one
•Election materials destroyed
David-Chyddy Eleke in Awka, Ibrahim Oyewale in Lokoja and Adedayo Akinwale in Abuja
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has deployed no fewer than 3,508 Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) for the general election in Kogi State.
The electoral umpire also announced Saturday, February 4th, 2023, for the conduct of mock accreditation of voters using BVAS across three Senatorial Districts in Kogi State.
This was just as gunmen yesterday attacked the office of INEC in Ojoto, Idemili South Local Government Area of Anambra State.
The Head of Department, Voter Education of INEC in Kogi State Haliru Haruna Sule, disclosed the planned mock accreditation yesterday, when he featured on a current affairs programe on a private radio station in Kogi State, Grace FM, which was monitored by THISDAY in Lokoja.
Sule stated that, the Commission had set aside many back up BVAS in case the any of the system malfunctions during the election period.
According to him, the mock accreditation would take place in six local government areas in the state.
They are Lokoja, Kabba Bunu, Okene, Ajaokuta, Dekina and Ibaji Local Government Area.
“Every voter has digital identities. The BVAS is meant for the accreditation of voters and testing the voter’s biometrics. We deliberately choose some local governments especially in Ibaji, which we believe has the remotest polling units in Kogi State and the inhabitants of Ibaji are predominantly farmers.
“Most of them are engage in hard labour and we feel that, the BVAS should be tested there. If they cannot be authenticated with their finger prints they can be authenticated with their facials. We want to ensure that their footprint is authenticated. We want to test the durations of the batteries of the BVAS practically.
“On election day, election is supposed to start from 8:30am and close by 2:30pm. But the rule says all the people on the queue either they are 200, you must attend to them. You can’t say because it is 2:30pm you won’t attend to them. You must attend to those that are on the queue. It is part of what we want to test between 8:30am to between 5pm or 6pm and more,” he stated.
Gunmen Attack INEC Office, Police Station in Anambra, Kill One
Meanwhile, gunmen yesterday attacked INEC’s office in Ojoto, Idemili South Local Government Area of Anambra State.
A source said the hoodlums burnt the commission’s headquarters in the area, using improvised explosive device (IED).
The gunmen also attacked a Police Station in Nnobi, in the same local government area, where a residential building inside the station was also attacked and a boy in the house was killed, while and a girl was injured.
The level of damage in the police station was however not ascertained as at the time of going to press.
The state police command’s spokesperson, DSP Toochukwu Ikenga confirmed the incidents in a press statement.
He said the attack happened at about 1:45 am on Wednesday, confirming that the attackers came in huge number, and we’re ferried to the scenes of the incidents in four Toyota Sienna vehicles.
He added that the command has made heavy deployment of security personnel around the state to forestall such attack in other places.
The statement read: “Anambra State Police Command today 1/2/2023 has reinforced security deployment in the state, following an attack on the INEC office in idemili south, Ojoto and Nnobi Police Station.
“The hoodlums came in their numbers by 1:45 am today 1/2/2023, with four unmarked Sienna vehicles, armed with IEDs, petrol bombs and other explosives.
“They invaded the INEC office, the police station and the residential building in the station. Unfortunately, one boy aged 16 years a relative of a serving policeman in the station was murdered by the armed men, while the other, a female aged 15 years old sustained a gunshot injury. She has been taken to the hospital where she is receiving treatment.”
Also, INEC also confirmed the attack of its office in Idemili South Local Government Area (LGA) and set ablaze by unknown gunmen.
INEC National Commissioner and Chairman Information and Voter Education Committee, Festus Okoye, disclosed this in a statement issued yesterday.
The latest attack made it 51 attacks the commission has suffered in the last four years.
He said the building was substantially damaged, while all furniture and other items were destroyed, including non-sensitive materials recently delivered in readiness for the 2023 polls.
He said: “The Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) for Anambra State, Dr. Queen Elizabeth Agwu, reported that our office in Idemili South LGA was attacked and set ablaze by unknown gunmen. The incident occurred in the early hours of today Wednesday 1st February 2023.
“Among the items lost to the inferno are 729 ballot boxes, 243 voting cubicles, 256 election bags, 11 megaphones, 1 electric power generator and large quantities of indelible ink and liquid gum.
“However, uncollected PVCs kept in the fireproof cabinet were not affected by the inferno. Similarly, no sensitive materials have been delivered to the LGA office.”
The electoral body stressed that the destruction appeared to have been coordinated as the Nnobi Police Station in the LGA was similarly attacked.
Despite this despicable incident, the Commission reassured the people of Idemili South LGA that contingency arrangements would be made to replace the materials and the presidential and National Assembly elections would proceed on 25th February 2023 as scheduled, to be followed two weeks later by the State House of Assembly election.
