Election violence: Anti-terrorism squad takes over INEC HQ •Jega expresses worries

Posted by admin Elections 2011, Top Stories Thursday, March 24th, 2011

AS the general election draws near, officers and men of the Anti-terrorism Squad (ATS) of the Nigeria Police

have taken over the national headquarters of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Abuja.

According to checks by the Nigerian Tribune, the ATS personnel, armed to the teeth, were stationed at strategic positions within and around the INEC headquarters.

As part of security measures, the gun-toting ATS personnel disallowed any vehicle from parking or dropping any passenger some metres away from the only entrance into the INEC office.

An informed security source at the INEC told the Nigerian Tribune that the drafting of the squad to the place became necessary following the growing violence in the land as the INEC offices, especially the headquarters, could be target of perpetrators who did not want the elections to hold.

“There is no cause for alarm, it is part of the security measures being put in place ahead of the April polls, we have to take extra-security measures, so that we are not taken unawares. You can see what is happening here and there, the evil-minded people can go to any extent to carry out their evil plans,” the source declared.

The squad thoroughly screened all incoming and outgoing vehicles as well as staff and visitors to the commission’s headquarters.

Meanwhile, the national chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Professor Attahiru Jega, on Wednesday met with the representatives of all registered political parties and expressed deep concern over the growing violence in the land ahead of the April polls.

Professor Jega, who blamed the violence on the unguarded utterances emanating from candidates and their supporters across all the political parties, pleaded with the chairmen of the political parties to call their members to order, saying that their actions were capable of disrupting the conduct of the general election.

He said that it was disheartening and very unfortunate that despite all the pleas on the need to eschew violence to allow for free, fair and credible elections, violence was still the order of the day and blamed it on “unguarded utterances of political leaders, either at the local or national levels.”

“This is worrisome, it cannot continue like that, I am appealing to the chairmen of the various political parties to call their members and their supporters to order, the violence here and there can lead to the disruption of the electoral process.”

This is coming just as the commission displayed the samples of the customised ballot papers, boxes and polling cubicles to be used for the conduct of all elections to representatives of the political parties.

According to the director of logistics of INEC, Alhaji Usman Farouk, the ballot papers were printed based on the number of political parties fielding candidates in each of the elections, except for houses of assembly, where all the political parties were incorporated.

Alhaji Farouk said based on the past experiences in which ballot boxes were being freely snatched, the ones to be used for the coming polls were customised with each containing units, wards, local government areas and codes of the states, to avoid illegal movement and snatching.

In an answer to a question, Jega said all the ballot papers to be used for each of the elections would be serially numbered in such a way that it would be difficult, if not impossible, to forge.

Professor Jega also announced that the commission had created additional 250 voting centres outside the existing 120,000 polling booths across the states of the federation and Abuja, for administrative convenience during the polls.

He made it clear that the action of the commission was transparent, open and was done in line with the law of the land.

On the modified open ballot system being introduced by the commission for the polls, Professor Jega said there was no going back, as it was meant to enhance transparency in the conduct of the elections.

All efforts by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to canvass for the change of the modified open ballot system to the old system was opposed by representatives of other political parties.

This is coming just as most of the representatives of the registered political parties raised the alarm that some unnamed politicians had acquired several fake police and military uniforms, as well as the kits of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) for their thugs to be used during the elections.

In addition, they also alleged that some political parties had brought millions of voter cards and stockpiled them for the elections, while others had also procured branded T-shirts and fez caps of other political parties which they intended to use to forment trouble on election days.

Reacting, Jega pleaded with any of the political leaders with useful information about the allegations to come up with evidence or to go and share such information with appropriate security agencies for immediate action.

Meanwhile, worried by the rising incidence of pre-election violence, President Goodluck Jonathan has vowed not to spare perpetrators and their sponsors, no matter how highly placed, as he has ordered security agencies to ensure that such people are promptly prosecuted.

The president, who gave the directive at Wednesday’s meeting of the Federal Executive Council (FEC) at the State House, Abuja, also ordered that efforts be stepped up by security outfits to apprehend law breakers.

According to the Minister of Information and Communications, Mr Labaran Maku, who briefed State House correspondents at the end of the meeting, the president had tasked political parties and leaders to ensure that their supporters obeyed the law, as no office, no matter how revered, was worth the blood of fellow Nigerians.

Joined by the Minister of Police Affairs, Mr Humphrey Abbah, in the briefing, Maku stated that government was committed to cracking down on violence and insisted that violence could not be allowed to be an instrument of grabbing power in the country.

FEC also approved the setting aside of N5.830 billion for the purchase of 95,000 grains, as part of the strategic food security programme of the country.

In another development, a massive and joint deployment of personnel of relevant agencies had been promised to be deployed, to ensure effective coverage of all the over 120,000 polling units nationwide.

The Inspector-General of Police, Mr Hafiz Ringim, disclosed this on Wednesday, at a two-day seminar on election security management for police officials in Abuja.

In his remarks, the Director General, State Security Service (SSS), Ita Ekpeyong, regretted that politicians had refused to learn and abide by the rules of the game, citing the example of what happened in Akwa Ibom, on Tuesday, stressing that it was a great challenge to all security agencies.

-Tribunewp_posts