ACN, Ladoja, Balogun seek action

The Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) has asked INEC to explain to Nigerians the arrest of suspects, who allegedly  tampered with registration materials, barely two weeks to the polls.

Governorship candidate of Accord in Oyo State Senator Rashidi Ladoja and a Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chieftain, Senator Lekan Balogun, called for a thorough investigation into the matter.

In a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the ACN said unless INEC acts quickly to regain the confidence of Nigerians, who were shocked by the Ibadan incident, it will be difficult for anyone to have confidence in the ability of the commission to organise free, fair and credible elections next month.

The ACN said the questions that INEC needs to provide answers to urgently include how the suspects got hold of the DDC machines and the voter register that were found with them, on behalf of which political party they were acting and whether the DDC machines were among those stolen or not.

‘’We have read in the papers that the suspects were acting in collusion with the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), but it will be important for INEC, acting with the police, to inform Nigerians whether this is true or not, and to reveal whether or not the Resident Electoral Commission for Oyo state was involved, in which case he will have to be sanctioned.

‘’It is also necessary for INEC to confirm published reports identifying one of the suspects as Osunlola Akinyinka of INEC’s information unit. If this is true, what is INEC doing to put its unscrupulous employee in check before and during the polls? And how pervasive is this kind of activity?’’ ACN queried.

The party recalled alerting Nigerians to the dangers posed by the stealing of INEC’s DDC machines at the airport, and INEC’s assurance that the theft would not have any effect on the registration process.

Ladoja, and Balogun called for a thorough investigation of the alleged manipulation of the voters’ registers in 27 local government areas.

 Balogun also called for the redeployment of the Resident Electoral Commissioner, Mr Ayo Adakeja, to restore the confidence of the electorate in the electoral umpire.

The two politicians spoke through separate statements in Ibadan yesterday.

Four people were arrested on Saturday at a private hotel in Old Bodija area of Ibadan while allegedly tampering with voters’ data in six computers belonging to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). Some other items recovered from them were said to link them with the PDP.

Ladoja, who spoke through the Director General of his campaign organisation, Hon. Adeolu Adeleke, condemned the illegal act and called on the Inspector General of Police, Hafeez Ringim, to bring perpetrators to book.

Balogun said the action is a negation of the hope expressed in Prof. Attahiru Jega’s leadership of INEC the umpire, adding that it was a sad reminder of the country’s dark days.