2023 elections threatened — Yakubu

2023 elections threatened

Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof Mahmood Yakubu has said that the 2023 general elections were in danger should the incessant attacks on their offices and facilities continued unabated.

Acknowledging that the commission can replace some essentials destroyed, the chairman said that there was a limit to which the attacks could stretch them.

Yakubu spoke at the commencement of an investigative hearing of the House Ad-hoc Committee of the House of Representatives investigating the attacks on offices and the facilities of the Independent National Electoral, INEC on Friday in Abuja.

The committee had also expressed its displeasure with the office of the Attorney General of the Federation for saying it has not received any request for the prosection of suspects responsible for attacks.

Yakubu said: “We are determined that we would continue with our preparations for the 2023 general elections. So far, all the facilities would be rebuilt or alternatives found and materials would be replaced. However, should such attacks continue at the pace at which they are happening at the moment, the Commission may find it increasingly difficult to recover in good time for the election. If it is about stopping the attacks, yes we can recover, but if the attacks continue, it would be very difficult for the commission to recover. That is why concerted efforts to stop these attacks have become imperative and we hope this public hearing would contribute to the required outcome.

“The attacks have far-reaching implications on preparation for the general elections. First, the facilities that are destroyed, especially offices, would take time to rebuild. They are not like items of procurement that you can procure off the shelf. So, an alternative arrangement has to be made. So, in some of the states, in addition to these malicious attacks, and other matters that have arisen as a result of fire and flooding, we would have to make alternative arrangements by renting. In some places, we can find facilities to rent. In some of the remote areas, we may not find facilities to rent. So, we have to look for alternatives to damaged facilities.

“Secondly several materials lost would have to be replaced. In the recent attacks, some of the PVCs, for instance, were lost. But for the PVCs, we have instructed our state offices to send the Voter Identification Numbers of the PVCs lost so we can reprint them. We can from our database quickly regenerate and reprint the cards so that citizens are not disenfranchised.

“The commission and security agencies must also continue to provide safety around the facilities and this, as I said earlier, may be very challenging, because the security agencies are also protecting all of us and other national assets. So, these attacks on our facilities are actually other challenges that our security agencies can do without.

“Now, we have to rebuild the facilities and our funds are overstretched by a number of factors. We cannot continue to replace and rebuild. And what is even more worrisome for us is the attack in Izzi LGA of Ebonyi State. The building was first attacked on 18th May 2012. We found the resources in our election project plan budget to rebuild the office and we did so. We rebuilt the office and our staff moved in on Friday. That weekend on Sunday, the office was burnt down again and there are five such offices nationwide where in spite of our best efforts, the facility was attacked not only once but twice. We have five offices in which even after rebuilding or trying to rebuild, the offices were attacked again.”

Responding to the committee’s displeasure with the office of the Attorney General of the federation on the arrest and prosecution not yet made, the Deputy Director in charge of Prosecution, Yusuf Abdullahi after a grill by the lawmakers said there was no former request yet.

He said “The office of the Attorney General is in charge of the prosecution, whether IG, DSS or other security agencies. Once they forward the case to us for prosecution with particular reference to the subject matter in discussion now which has to do with the arrest and prosecution of attacks on offices of INEC, so as far as the office is concerned we have not formally received any request for prosecution on that one. That is the content of our letter. But  however as soon as we receive, whether terrorism, banditry, or attacks, once we receive we commence an action to ensure that we keep legal advice, analyze evidence and prosecute.”

But the Chairman of the Committee, Hon Taiwo Oluga was not satisfied.

“Are you saying since we have been having these incessant attacks, your office has not received any for prosecution? Are you saying that from 2019 the office of the Attorney General has not received from the police or INEC to prosecute? That means they have not made an arrest. I said something when a crime keeps going without punishment, it grows with impunity and the office of the attorney general is the only one that can help us once they are apprehended, prosecuted and punished.

“You know the argument of the Committee is that the office of the AGF is before Nigerians and telling Nigerians that you have not received any. If you have received it, how many? If you are coming before this committee, you are supposed to have been prepared to let Nigerians know that you have been working.

“What we would do to move on is that we are going to take you on a separate day. Because you are not ready for us. Even from your submission, you are not ready for us. If you cannot come and tell us that you are trying to prosecute and you have prosecuted and you have done this or done that. Because when these people apprehend, they cannot prosecute. It is your office and you allow the evils to be growing. That is the meaning. So we are going to take you at a later date. We would communicate. Unfortunately, we only have three weeks to complete this assignment. We would write to you again and you forward your submission so we can marry it with the report we would give to the House”, she said.

In his presentation, the  Inspector General of Police (IGP), Usman Baba Alkali attributed the attacks to the clandestine acts of some politicians and secessionist groups in the South East and South West.

Represented by the DIG in charge of the Department of Operations, Dandaura Mustapha, the IGP said, “The Nigeria police are the lead agency in internal security and elections generally are always at the receiving end. Whatever happens — it is the duty of the police to protect here and there.

“When INEC finally lifted on campaigns — the campaigns commenced and what we realized initially was inter and intra-party dispute. We realized that members of political parties were destroying billboards, posters, destruction of campaign offices in some parts of the states. We quickly alerted the commissioner of police in charge of the commands and gave them a clear directive that it is the right of every political party to go to all the nooks and crannies of society and campaign.

“It is a constitutional right so on the account does a state governor or any state actor to prevent political parties from moving about to do their campaigns. We now come to the immediate attack on INEC facilities. Of recently, the ones that took place in Osun and Ogun, then last week in Ebonyi, Imo and Enugu.

“What we discovered is that — we all know in this country, it is a well-known fact that in the south-east geo-political zone we have issues of secessionists — the IPOB and ESN. These groups are bent on stopping elections from taking place in the southeast.

“They have been attacking our personnel, they have been killing our personnel. They have been retrieving arms from members of the security agencies, not only the police — the military and other paramilitary organisations that are there.

“They have been doing it, especially now that the embargo on campaigns has been lifted. The election is approaching very fast and they are putting much pressure to see that this election does not hold in the southeast political zone.

“In the southwest, we equally have the pro-Yoruba secessionists that are equally bent on succeeding and not allowing the election to take place in their areas, hence the attack on INEC in Osun and Ogun of recent. Those ones are there too sponsored by politicians and other stakeholders.

“There is also an issue of failed and desperate politicians who are bent on stopping INEC from conducting this election. The failed politicians are those who could not come back through any political parties, and as far as they are concerned, let everything spoil, let everything scatter. They are using that opportunity so sponsor illiterate followers of the party and hoodlums to make sure that this general election does not hold and should not be successful.

“On the part of the desperate politicians, they feel that since they cannot stop from taking all these measures (to stop election reffing) let them sponsor hoodlums to make sure that this election should not be a successful exercise.

“All these issues, we have gotten them and we have sat with the state commissioner of police and the action taken by the IGP. On the 17th of November, the IGP held a meeting with political party leaders, and INEC representatives were there. We discussed in length that all political parties are free to go about their campaigns in all the states and they should talk and work on their followers to desist from this hooliganism.

“The IGP equally held a meeting with all the operational officers of the other agencies, the military, civil defence officers, and paramilitary agencies.

“We held a meeting on Tuesday the 13th of this month whereby all the operational officers of all the security agencies discussed measures to be taken to safeguard the facilities of INEC.

“It’s a well-known fact that we have issues of secessionists that are bent on stopping elections in the south East. There is also the issue of failed politicians who are bent on making sure that the election does not hold. There is also the issue of retired politicians.

“The police are handicapped as most of the people arrested are connected to high places. Police are understaffed. We are not up to four hundred thousand. We lack manpower. We need additional funding for recruitment. We lose personnel every day and we need to replace”, he said.

Similarly, the Commandant Civil Defence, Ahmed Audi, said that the attacks were targeted at the 2023 elections, adding that the Civil Defence has lost men in the crisis, especially in Imo state.

“It is glaring that one of the reasons for the attack is to prevent INEC from conducting free, fair and credible Elections. It might disenfranchise some people and cost the government money. We have increased the deployment of men to curtail the attacks. We have also mounted surveillance on facilities across the country”. Mr Audi said.

On his part, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon Femi Gbajabiamila, while declaring the hearing open, said that the House of Representatives was quite disturbed at the attacks ahead of the 2023 elections, calling all hands to be on the deck to stop the menace.

“It is on this basis that the House of Representatives not only unequivocally condemned these nefarious attacks but also resolved to set up an Ad-hoc Committee to investigate the remote and immediate causes of the incessant attacks on INEC facilities. We are indeed hopeful that at the end of this investigation, the Committee would be able to come up with far-reaching recommendations that will not only bring an end to these unfortunate attacks on our democracy but also ensure that the perpetrators of the nefarious acts will be made to face the full wrath of the law”. Gbajabiamila said.