***Debunks Yiaga Africa report on fake result sheets
By Friday Idachaba, Lokoja.
The Nigeria Police as the the coordinating force for security agencies covering the Kogi Governorship Election and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) have denied incidences of ballot box snatching, fake result sheets and killing during Saturday election.
Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG) Ahmed Habu Sanni leading the security agencies on monitoring of the exercise in Lokoja on Saturday said the Interagency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICES) had not received any report to that effect.
The DIG who was responding to social media reports of alleged killings and ballot box snatching at Anyigba and Ganaja Primary School Polling unit in Lokoja said there was nothing like that from information available to him.
He said that the Ganaja Polling Unit was the largest in the country with about 13,000 registered voters and “that is why we’re here.
“We know that it has the largest concentration of voters here and we have not left any stone unturned to ensure that the place is really fortified well” adding that that they (Security and INEC officials) got wind of possible violence and had to come down.
The Deputy Inspector General (DIG) said the security agencies had taken full cognizance of the situation and and were going to reinforce the security team with additional men to secure the polling center.
Sanni said the move was particularly imperative as the election process was approaching a critical stage, counting period.
“We have already fortified the place. If you go out, you will see the various security outfits that are already on ground and I told you after assessing the situation now we are going to have additional manpower.
He said that at the Ganaja Polling center, there was a Commissioner of Police to coordinate security agents deployed to man the voting units at the center.
He urged the electorate to have confidence in the process and be law abiding adding that undèr such circumstance, the result would be counted and entered appropriately and escorted to the final collation center where every result would be collated for the state.
He urged the people not to entertain any form of fear saying, “they have nothing to fear. We have seen it and we have known that this place is the largest polling unit in the country with about 13,000 registered voters.
On the circulation of fake result sheets at local governments revealed by Yiaga Africa, the DIG said, “Well, if there’s anything like that we’re going to investigate.
“It has been escalated. I cannot talk on what I’ve not seen yet but what is there is, when our teams send in their report, we verify the report.
On reports about killings in some of the local governments he said, “I’m telling you as far as the process is concerned I’ve not seen any killing that has taken place in any place.
“I cannot confirm any, because I haven’t had such reports yet. I cannot confirm anything. Yiaga is not INEC. So, as far as I’m concerned, my men in the field have not reported this incident as you are referring to.
On his observations and preliminary reports so far received, the INEC Resident Electoral Commissioner, Dr Hale Gabriel Longpet said We’ve all been able to check in the fact that people have been accredited.
“Voting has gone on smoothly in those areas we’ve visited. And so at this point, we’ve come here, being the largest polling unit in the country, with 13,000 registered voters. You yourself have seen the crowd that is here.
“We ensure that people should be very orderly. We ensure that as long as there are people in the queue, they don’t have to stop at 2.30. As long as there are people in the queue, that’s what the law says.
“And they will have to be accredited and they will have to vote. Until the last person on the queue votes, they cannot close polling”, Longpet said. (Ends)