The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Inec

  • INEC report on Rivers rerun and police

    INEC report on Rivers rerun and police

    SIR: The attention of the Nigeria Police Force has been drawn to a report on pages 1 and 4 of The Nation of February 22 with the above title.

    Consequent on the conduct of the Rivers rerun election of December 10, and the attendant irregularities and violence witnessed during the election, the Nigeria Police Force set up a joint investigative panel made up of Senior Police Officers and Officers of Department of State Security Service on December 22, 2016, to investigate all the misconducts, identified infractions, incidents of violence and other actions and inactions of Police personnel and INEC officials, other security agencies and stakeholders who were deployed for the Rivers rerun election.

    The panel was further mandated to also investigate the prevalence of violent crimes, such as armed robbery, kidnapping/hostage taking, and hijack of election materials and attacks on electorates, INEC members of staff, ad-hoc personnel and other stakeholders that were involved either directly or indirectly in the conduct of the election. The joint investigation panel submitted its report to the Inspector General of Police on February 7.

    The Nigeria Police Force identified and proactively took action against six Police Officers who were indicted by the investigative panel to have compromised, engaged in serious misconduct, misused fire arms, and for other conducts in violation of the Electoral Act and other enabling laws during the Rivers rerun election.  They were arrested, investigated and subjected to internal disciplinary measures and after being found guilty were dismissed from the Force and paraded before the media on January 6 awaiting prosecution. Other agencies whose personnel were also indicted by the Joint Investigation Panel are expected to do the same to their personnel indicted without any further delay.

    Twenty three INEC Electoral Officers and two administrative officials who were indicted by the panel were arrested, investigated and total sum of one hundred and eleven million three hundred thousand naira (N111, 300,000) confessed to have been collected from the His Excellency, the Governor of Rivers State, Barr. Nyesom Wike was recovered from them. They were released on bail to the Director of Human Resources, INEC Headquarters Abuja.

    The report as quoted above is a disservice to the Nigeria Police Force because all the issues raised were discovered by the Joint Investigative Panel and have been dealt with. The story is therefore misleading, malicious and capable of misinforming members of the public on the statutory roles of the Nigeria Police Force in election security, restoration of law and order, and the protection of lives and property throughout the country.

     

    CSP Jimoh O Moshood,

    Force Headquarters, Abuja.

  • Police fault INEC’s report on Rivers rerun polls

    The Police on Wednesday faulted a report recently released by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on the rerun Rivers legislative election.

    The report indicted the police and other security agencies.

    Reacting to the report, the police in a statement issued by the Force Spokesman,  CSP Jimoh Moshood, maintained that the Force is apolitical, will not engage in any political partisanship and will continue to ensure that election security is guaranteed across the country.

    The statement reads: “The attention of the Nigeria Police Force has been drawn to a report on pages 1 and 4 of The Nation Newspaper of today, 22nd February, 2017 titled: “ INEC REPORT ON RIVERS RERUN INDICTS POLICE, OTHERS.”

    “The Nigeria Police Force as the lead agency in election security in the country recognizes the need to ensure that the rule of law, policing based on International core values with integrity, principles of democratic policing in conformity with the electoral acts prevail in all its operations as regard elections, and protection of life and property across the nation.

    “Consequent on the conduct of the Rivers Rerun Election of 10th December, 2017, and the attendant irregularities and violence witnessed during the election, the Nigeria Police Force acted promptly and proactively by the  setting up and inauguration of a joint investigative panel, made up of senior police officers and officers of Department of State Security Service with proven integrity by the Inspector General of Police,  on the  22nd December, 2016, to investigate all the misconducts, identified infractions, incidents of violence and other actions and inactions of police personnel and INEC Officials, other security agencies and stakeholders who were deployed for the 10th December, 2016 Rivers rerun election.

  • INEC report on Rivers rerun indicts police, others

    INEC report on Rivers rerun indicts police, others

    The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has released a damning report on the December 10, 2016 Rivers State rerun.
    The police compromised the integrity of the election, an INEC administrative inquiry said.
    The report cites obstructive involvement of security agencies as one of the factors that led to the failure of the electoral process in some local government areas.
    Part of the 37-page report reads: “One of the low points of the Rivers’ rerun of the 10th December, 2016 was the flagrant intervention of security operatives in the process.
    “This was widely identified by staff of the Commission and independent observers alike as one of the major factors that led to the failure of the process in some local government areas.
    “There were too many security agencies involved in the process outside the framework of the Interagency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES). It was not clear whether many of them were acting as part of their various organisations, or as groups and individuals serving political interests.
    “Most importantly, many of them showed profound political partisanship. Ironically then, security operatives, who were expected to protect the process, turned on it.”
    The INEC committee report described as strange the conduct of senior police officers deployed in the state to ensure a peaceful conduct of the rerun.
    It said: “But most mid-boggling were cases of hostage taking, hijack of materials and physical attacks on INEC officials by security operatives.”
    The five-man committee, chaired by INEC’s National Comissioner Prof Okechukwu Ibeanu, named in its report a particular police officer, who it said tried to lure INEC officials away from their duty posts.

  • Rivers polls: INEC ‘yet to receive report’ on indicted officials

    The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Tuesday said it was yet to receive the official report of the police investigative panel on the December 10, 2016 legislative rerun elections in Rivers.

    The commission’s Director of Voter Education and Publicity, Mr. Oluwole Osaze-Uzzi, disclosed this to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja.

    The panel’s report submitted to police authorities on February7, indicted 23 electoral officers, for allegedly collecting monetary inducements to rig the elections.

    Out of over N360 million said to have been received by the INEC personnel, the panel publicly displayed N111 million which it recovered from the officials who participated in the polls.

    The panel added that three senior electoral officers collected N20 million each out of the N360 million believed to have been used by the Rivers Government to influence officials who conducted the elections.

    Osaze-Uzzi also said he was not aware that the indicted officials have been handed over to INEC for internal disciplinary measures in line with Public Service rules.

    “The commission is yet to receive any report of the police investigative panel on the alleged indicted officers,” he told NAN.

    “The commission, like every other Nigerian, only read the outcome of the investigation in the news.

    “What we read was that the officers were going to be handed over to the Attorney-General of the Federation for prosecution.

    “I am not aware that the alleged indicted officers have been handed over to INEC either at our Rivers office or headquarters in Abuja for disciplinary actions.”

     

     

  • Alleged poll bribe: EFCC to arraign INEC’s deputy director

    Alleged poll bribe: EFCC to arraign INEC’s deputy director

    The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on Tuesday said it has concluded arrangements to prosecute a Deputy Director of the Independent Electoral Commission (INEC) in Akwa Ibom State, and former Electoral Officer in Rivers State, Gogo Anderson Waribo, for allegedly collecting N16 million out of the N23. 29 billion poll bribery cash.

    A statement issued by the Head of Media and Publicity of EFCC, Mr. Wilson Uwujaren, said the suspect will be put on trial as soon as investigation is concluded.

    The statement said: “Waribo allegedly collected N16 million linked to the N23 billion slush fund linked to Diezani Allison-Madueke during the 2015 general election, with the aim of influencing the outcome of the election.

    “He was arrested by EFCC operatives following intelligence report that some INEC officers conspired with some staff  of Fidelity Bank to defraud the Federal Government of several millions of naira.

    “Although he denied the allegations, investigation revealed that the INEC deputy director’s name was on the list of the “bribe takers.”

    “It was revealed that he received N16 million through his First Bank account on March 27, 2015 and gave N5 million to Peter Popnen, an ex- INEC official.

    He will be arraigned as soon as investigation is completed.

    “The EFCC has been probing the embattled former Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke on her alleged involvement in a $115 million (N23, 299,705, 000) 2015 poll bribery scandal.”

    About four oil firms, 14 directors of oil companies, two banks, two RECs, more than 16 INEC directors and others are also under investigation on the matter.

     

  • Rivers Rerun: Balance of N360million alleged bribed used to buy cars, others

    Rivers Rerun: Balance of N360million alleged bribed used to buy cars, others

    What happened to the balance of the N360m outstanding balance of the money allegedly used to influence the outcome of the Rivers State senatorial election rerun?

    The source said the money was used to buy choice vehicles’, houses and renovate some other ones.

    A 15-man panel set up by the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Ibrahim Idris had last week come out with a report that indicted the Rivers State governor, Nyesom Wike.

    The panel claimed that it recovered N111.3million from N360million alleged to have been given to 23 officials of INEC.

    Giving an update on the findings of the panel, a source close to the investigation who pleaded anonymity said: “The panel recovered discovered that some of them bought houses, cars and even renovated their existing houses with the money.

    “The panel also discovered that some gave out money to their relatives while some others invested money. Several cars were recovered and they would be tendered during prosecution in court.

    The Source further gave more insight on what the panel unraveled during investigation.

    He said: “In the audio tape that went viral, the governor was mentioning 8,8,7; and what he was referring to was the officials of INEC. He gave the leaders of the INEC officials from the three states, N20million each.

    “They brought outsiders for the election because they wanted neutral body to ensure transparency but they were bribed by the governor. They were 23 in number, eight came from Osun or Oyo, eight from Plateau and seven from Anambra state.

    “If you listened to the tape that went viral, you will discover that there was a part where the governor was shouting, kill them because they didn’t do their work well. The three states where officials came from have a leader. The leaders were the ones that were given N20million and others were given N15qwmillion. So, it was the leaders that he was threatening to kill.

    “As mentioned by the IG, the report will be sent to the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF), Abubakar Malami (SAN) will now go through it and necessary action will be taken against those indicted. He is the Chief Law of the Federation.

    On whether the report was doctored and if it was just a political move to tarnish the image of the governor who belongs to the opposition party, the source said: “where did the police get the huge amount of money from? Those cars and houses recovered, where did the panel get it from? Is it police money or something?

    “23 people have been arrested and they all confessed. It was through them that the money was recovered; it was through them that the cars were also recovered. The 23 people arrested, the panel have their video confessions and they all wrote their official statement with their hand. They are all educated people and they used their own handwriting to write their confession and they also talked on video. They videos will be provided during prosecution.

    “All documents are available on how they were summoned to the government house, how they were given the money inside the government house and how vehicles were brought to them to move with the Ghana Must Go bags, and how they were moved to their hotels. Everything was confessed to on video.

    “This is not a political issue. This is a case where money that was supposed to be used to build schools, hospitals, roads and others social amenities have been squandered. So, whoever does wrong will be made to carry his or her cross irrespective of political affiliation.

    “So, that is the true position of everything. Everything is there and all the people that the money were recovered from are alive, they confessed both in written form and in videos.

    On why they were not presented to the press that time, the source simply said: “we could not present them that time because they are INEC staff and they are yet to be dismissed. Also, we want the Attorney General to take action first before they would be interviewed but all evidences are on ground. It is a very clear case”.

  • INEC opens defence in Edo guber poll suit

    INEC  on Friday opened its defence in the petition filed by the PDP  and its candidate in the Sept. 28, 2016  governorship election in Edo,  Mr  Osagie Ize-Iyamu, before  the Justice Ahmed Badamasi three-member tribunal in Benin.

    The PDP and its candidate are challenging the declaration by INEC of  Godwin Obaseki of the APC as  winner of the election.

    The petitioners  listed INEC, Obaseki and the APC as first, second and third respondents respectively.

    The petitioners on Feb. 10 closed their case after calling 91 witnesses and tendering  several documentary pieces of evidence before the tribunal.

    At the resumed hearing on Friday, INEC counsel and a Senior Advocate of Nigeria(SAN),  Mr Onyeachi Ikpeazu,  informed the tribunal that his client was  ready to open its case although witnesses may not be called.

    “ We  have led copious evidence through cross examination of the petitioners’  witnesses.

    “We propose to tender few documents when we need to confront them and enhance evidence already led and  at the end of which, if need be, we will call witnesses,’’ he said.

    Ikpeazu thereafter sought the tribunal’s permission to tender as evidence  10 copies of form EC8B, being ward collation result for wards  in Uhunmwonde Local Government Area of the state .

    Counsel to the   petitioners (Ize-Iyamu and PDP),  Mr Kemi Pinheiro,  counsel to Obaseki,  Mr Ken Mozia  and APC’s lawyer, Mr Lateef Fagbemi, all did  not oppose the application for tender.

    Pinheiro , however, observed that since the documents sought to be tendered as evidence by INEC were same as those before the tribunal as exhibits, “it will make proceeding smoother if we harmonise the documents with a schedule during trial,’’

    He argued that the form EC8B document tendered was the  same as exhibit PO4(154-163) tendered by the petitioners.

    “ If not harmonised for different exhibit numbers, this will  create precipice of confusion.

    “I am saying that since the petitioners’ document and those sought to be  tendered by INEC are from same source, I  thought INEC should call oral witness to identify the exhibits before the tribunal,’’ he said.

    Ipeazu, however,  replied saying,  “we have brought documents we have front loaded to support our case. They have done theirs; it is not for the petitioners to determine  how we should organise our defence even if these documents are the  same.’’

    “ I am therefore asking for  an adjournment to Monday  while I  concede to the suggestion that parties examine the documents sought to be tendered.

    “I also intend to interact with electoral officers we may call as to who  I  wish to tender as witnesses,’’ he added.

    Ruling, the tribunal  chairman admitted the documents as exhibit IR(1-10)  and ordered INEC to serve the petitioners and the other respondents with its schedule of the other documents to be tendered before the tribunal.

    Badamasi also ruled that parties should use Saturday to examine INEC documents sought to be tendered and adjourned till Monday.(NAN)

  • Edo polls: Tribunal releases results of recounted ballot papers

    Edo polls: Tribunal releases results of recounted ballot papers

    The Edo State Election Petitions Tribunal has released results of the recounted ballot papers used for the September 28 governorship election.

     

    In its ruling on February 9, 2017, the three-man tribunal headed by Justice Ahmed Badamasi granted the prayers of the People’s Democratic Party and Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu by ordering the recount of ballot papers in Egor, Akoko-Edo, Etsako West and Etsako East local government areas.

     

    The APC won in all the four local government areas where the ballot papers were recounted.

     

    However, the ballot papers which held for two days could not be concluded following the expiration of the period given to the petitioners to prove their cases.

     

    From the results released, only eight wards were counted in three local government areas while no ballot papers were recounted in Estako East local government.

     

    In the report signed by the Assistant Secretary to the tribunal, Buhari Sani, and given to parties in the case, the recounting exercise was concluded in Wards 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 in Etsako West Local Government Area, Wards 1 and 2 in Akoko-Edo Local Government Area and Ward 1 of Egor Local Government Area. 

     

    The recounting from Estako West showed that Ward 1 had 1,281 votes, Ward 2 had 1,542 votes, Ward 3 had 1,490 votes, Ward 4 had 1,994 and Ward 5 had 3,025 votes.

     

    In Akoko-Edo, Ward 1 had a total of 3,206 and Ward 2 had a total of 3,849 votes.

     

    The only ward counted in Egor local government had 3,217 votes.

     

    Sani said the recounting stopped at 1pm by the tribunal on the application of Counsel to the Governor Godwin Obaseki.

     

    The tribunal resumes sitting on Friday with INEC opening its defence of the case.

  • INEC chair rules out electronic voting in 2019

    INEC chair rules out electronic voting in 2019

    •N19.1b to be spent on elections this year

    The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) yesterday ruled out electronic and diaspora voting in the 2019 general elections.
    The electoral umpire told the Senate that until the Constitution was amended and necessary logistics put in place, the commission cannot delve into electronic and diaspora voting.
    It said electronic and diaspora voting do not only lack constitutional backing but were also expensive to execute.
    The commission said work was in progress to develop a strategic plan on the financial requirements for the 2019 polls.
    INEC Chairman Prof Mahmood Yakubu spoke when he appeared before the Senate Committee on Finance to defend the commission’s 2017 budget.
    The committee demanded to know the preparedness of the commission for the 2019 general elections.
    A member of the committee, Senator Yakubu Abubakar, wanted to know if INEC would key into the reported breakthrough of the National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI), in the invention of electronic voting machine in the 2019 general election.
    Yakubu said for the past three years, INEC’s annual budget had stood at N45 billion.
    He said the commission was yet to know how much the 2019 general election would gulp.
    He said INEC’s purse had been deeply drained following “unscheduled elections” in the last one year caused mainly by deaths of 13 national and state assembly members.
    He said: “For instance, in the last one year, we have conducted 13 unscheduled by-elections caused by deaths of some members of national and state assembly, meaning that on the average, a member of the national or state assembly dies every month.”
    Chairman of the committee, John Owan Enoh, explained that the purpose of the session was to know the commission’s revenue framework before approving them.
    The commission is to spend N19.1 billion for elections this year, Yakubu said while presenting the commission’s N45 billion 2017 budget before the Aisha Dukku- headed House Committee on Electoral Matters yesterday,
    According to him, INEC has drawn up a strategic plan in preparation for the 2019 general election, while working out the financial implication.
    The early preparation, he said, would ensure readiness for the polls, with the strategic plan already being discussed at the three levels of government.
    Yakubu also said with harmonisation of databases, yet to be concluded. the use National Identity cards for the polls, might not be feasible,
    A supplementary budget request would be submitted for the Implementation of the strategic plan, Yakubu said.
    His words: “At this point, we cannot put a figure on the budget for the elections (2019) until we complete the process of validating the strategic plan.Therefore, we are likely to approach the executive and the National Assembly for supplementary budget in this 2017.
    “The supplementary aspect should incorporate something for the elections and in 2018, we will have it in the main proposals.”
    “About N20.9 billion of the commission’s N45 billion budget is proposed for personnel costs, N2.3 billion proposed for capital projects, while N19.1 billion is proposed for elections that would hold in 2017.
    “Fortunately, we do not have many elections this year. Apart from Anambra State, where there will be a governorship election, there are no numerous elections”, he said.
    He said in 2016, the commission, spent about N24 billion on elections, including re-run.
    On use of identity cards for elections, Yakubu said there was a policy in place, mandating agencies with individual data bases, to harmonise such data with the national identity card and that the Office of the Vice President was coordinating the exercise.
    “That process has not been concluded. INEC today has the largest data base in the country with 70million registered voters. That is a huge figure, much larger than when you talk about the population of many African countries put together”.
    A member of the committee, Jonathan Gaza Gbewfi commended the early preparation for the 2019 polls, but however observed that the legislature ought to have been consulted on the strategic plan.
    “We are the elected representatives of the people. Those in the executive are mostly appointed officers. You have to start talking with the representatives of the people first on whatever plan you have for elections,” Gbewfi said.

  • No electronic, diaspora voting in 2019 elections – INEC

    No electronic, diaspora voting in 2019 elections – INEC

    The Independent National Electoral Commission, (INEC) on Monday ruled out electronic and diaspora voting in 2019 general elections.
     
    The electoral umpire told the Senate that until the Constitution was amended and necessary logistics put in placed, the commission cannot delve into electronic and diaspora voting.
     
    It said that electronic and diaspora voting do not only lack constitutional backing but were also expensive to execute. 
     
    The commission said that work was in progress to develop a strategic plan with a view to coming out with the financial requirements for the 2019 poll and other pending elections including the Anambra governorship election and Anambra Central Senatorial District by-election. 
     

    Prof. Mahmoud Yakubu
    Prof. Mahmood
    INEC Chairman, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, stated this when he appeared before the Senate Committee on Finance to defend the commission’s 2017 budget.
     
    The committee had demanded to know the preparedness of the commission ahead of the 2019 general elections. 
     
    A member of the committee, Senator Yakubu Abubakar, wanted to know if INEC would key into the reported breakthrough of by the National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure, (NASENI), in the invention of electronic voting in the 2019 general election. 
     
    Professor Yakubu noted that since the news of the electronic voting machine invention came up, he had not been either formally or informally informed by NASENI.
     
    The INEC boss said that even if he was formally informed, to adopt electronic voting in the election, the possibility would not be feasible because the device should be tested to certify the efficiency.
     
    He added that the device should also be produced in large quantity to cover the country’s numerous polling units. 
     
    On whether INEC would incorporate diaspora voting in the election, the INEC boss answered in the negative.
     
    He said that there was no provision for diaspora voting. 
     
    Yakubu noted that for INEC to adopt the system the constitution needed to be amended to give it legal backing.
    He also said that the cost of running the method was very high.
     
    The INEC boss said that adopting the method at this time of economic recession occasioned by the problem of currency exchange rates would deeply and negatively affect the country’s finances. 
     
    Yakubu noted that for the past three years, INEC’s annual budget had stood at N45 billion.
     
    He said the commission was yet to know how much the 2019 general election would gulp.
     
    The commission, he said, was already embarking on a strategic plan with a view to coming out with the actual financial figure the 2019 elections and others would cost the country. 
     
    He said that INEC’s purse had been deeply drained following “unscheduled elections” in the last one year caused mainly by deaths of 13 national and state assembly members. 
     
    He said, “For instance, in the last one year, we have conducted 13 unscheduled by-elections caused by deaths of some members of national and state assembly, meaning that on the average, a member of the national or state assembly dies every month. ” 
     
    Chairman of the committee, John Owan Enoh, explained that the purpose of the session was to avail federal government agencies that come under statutory transfer the opportunities of interacting with the committee on their revenue framework before approval for their various committees.