Thugs disrupt election in Kogi, move away election materials

Armed thugs are said to have stormed some polling units in Kogi’s Dekina LGA and stolen election materials, disrupting the voting process.

The incident was described as “callous and very unfortunate” by Silas Rindam, the INEC Electoral Officer (EO) of Dekina LGA, who confirmed it to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Saturday.

“We got the news of the incident from our ad hoc staff who had to flee for their safety,” he said.

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“The thugs not only stole our election materials in Anyigba, but also here in Dekina town.

“According to what I’ve learned, seven polling units in Dekina town have been affected out of a total of 352 polling units in the area.” he said.

Williams Ovye-Aya, the state police spokesperson, confirmed the incident but urged calm because security operatives were on top of the situation.
He wondered why such a heinous incident would occur when the state’s 3,508 polling units were guarded by over 7,000 police officers.

When contacted, Kogi Governor’s Security Adviser, Jerry Omodara, expressed sadness over the incident, noting that it had disrupted the state’s peaceful atmosphere.

Mr Omodara stated that Governor Yahaya Bello had ordered a manhunt to apprehend and prosecute the perpetrators of the heinous act.

“There is no such thing in Kogi. “We’ll go after them and make sure they face the full force of the law,” he said.

Earlier, a reliable source in Dekina told NAN that the invasion, which occurred around 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, mostly affected several polling units in Anyigba and Dekina towns.

“The situation has instilled fear in the electorate in the affected areas, with no voting taking place,” the source claimed.

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