Nine wards in the Ogori/Magongo Local Government Area of Kogi State will not be holding elections, according to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
In a statement released on Saturday, Mohammed Kudu Haruna, National Commissioner of INEC and Member of the Information and Voter Education Committee, confirmed the suspension.
He cites “election malpractices, particularly the incident of result sheets completed before voting” as the reason for the change.
This is just not acceptable at all. According to INEC’s announcement, “Any result that does not come from the Commission’s process in the Polling Units will not be accepted.”
The Commission is adamant about not rewarding inappropriate behaviour. As a result, there is currently a suspension of the elections in the nine Wards of Ogori/Magongo LGA (Eni, Okibo, Okesi, Ileteju, Aiyeromi, Ugugu, Obinoyin, Obatgben, and Oturu).
“We are conducting a thorough investigation into the incidents in the other Local Government Areas, and we will announce the results and the next steps within the next 24 hours.”
Following reports of malpractice, the electoral umpire declared that it will go into the incidents and find “those who may have been complicit in undermining the process.”
“We have a record of every official assigned to a polling location, including supervisors, monitors, technical workers, and officials at different levels, together with all the election materials that were sent to them. Where necessary, appropriate sanctions will be implemented, it promised.
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“The Commission guarantees Kogi State voters that their wishes will be honoured and their votes will be safeguarded.”
The exact statement is as follows: “Our personnel in Kogi State have reported to the Commission instances of electoral malpractice, specifically the completion of result sheets prior to voting.
According to reports, the occurrences took place in the local government areas of Adavi, Ajaokuta, Ogori/Magongo, Okehi, and Okene. Ogori/Magongo was the scene of the most serious occurrences, involving nine out of ten Registration Areas.
This is just not acceptable at all. Any outcome that does not come from the Polling Unit process conducted by the Commission will not be accepted.
The Commission is adamant about not rewarding inappropriate behaviour. As a result, there is currently a suspension of the elections in the nine Wards of Ogori/Magongo LGA (Eni, Okibo, Okesi, Ileteju, Aiyeromi, Ugugu, Obinoyin, Obatgben, and Oturu). The events in the other LGAs are being looked into in great detail, and over the next 24 hours, the results and next steps will be made public.
As the procedures go on, we keep an eye on the audit trail of employees and supplies to identify anyone who might have helped undermine the process. We maintain a record of every official assigned to a polling unit, including supervisors, monitors, technical workers, and officials at different levels, together with all the election materials that were sent to them. When necessary, the appropriate sanctions shall be implemented.
The Commission guarantees Kogi State voters that their wishes will be honoured and their ballots will be safeguarded.
