Reps to unravel hoodlums behind attacks on INEC offices, facilities

JONAS EZIEKE, Abuja

An Ad-hoc Committee of the House of Representatives is set to unravel the hoodlums behind the frequency of attacks on offices and facilities of the nation’s electoral umpire-the Independent National Electoral commission INEC which had witnessed a series of attacks on its offices ahead of the 2023 general elections.

 The Chairman House Ad-hoc Committee on Attacks on Offices and Facilities of the INEC Hon. Taiwo Oluga in a remark at an investigative hearing organised by the House said that the parliament is working to stop these attacks and unravel those behind these crimes on Friday.

She said that the House in a resolution after a motion was moved and adopted on the matter by a lawmaker had mandated the probe panel to investigate the orgy of violent attacks on INEC offices and facilities and report back to the House within three weeks.

Speaker of the House Hon.Femi Gbajabiamila who declared the investigation open said that the House is disturbed on these incessant attacks on the INEC facilities because it poses a threat to democratic governance.

He also said that in the last two months a total of seven offices of the nation’s electoral umpire in many states of the country.

He called on the Ad-hoc Committee to do a diligent investigation into the hoodlums behind these assults on the nation’s assets and come up with a report on ways to forestall these attacks.

In a presentation, Chairman of the INEC Prof Mahmood Yakubu said that since 2019 over 40 offices of the nation’s electioral management body had come under series of attacks by unidentified hoodlums

He also stated that these attacks has far reaching effects on the smooth conduct of the general election in 2023 general elections.

In a document presented to lawmakers on these attacks, he said that the South-East states of Imo, Enugu and Ebonyi are the highest in the frequency while the Boko Harm invaded Borno, Adamawa and Yobe states in the North-East has recorded only one attack on the INEC facilities.

He charged the security agencies to work assiduously towards halting these unwarranted attacks on INEC facilities and lamented that the many electoral materials had been damaged due to it.

A member of the Committee Hon. Halims Ibrahim (Kogi, APC) urged the heads of the security agencies to go for the arrest of the politicians that sponsor violence attacks on opponents and the INEC offices.

The Inspector-General of Police IGP Usman Alkali Baba repreprented by Deputy Inspector-General of Police in-charge of Operations DIG Dan Daura Mustapha said that most of these attacks are sponsored by politcal offices holders including state governors.

He said that the Police force as the lead internal security agency had arrested many of the gunmen behind these attacks but most times that governors intervene to ensure they are released by them.

The Committee Chairman Hon. Oluga while assuring the invited stakeholders of diligence on the investigation into these attacks said that they are a threat to the nation’s democracy.

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