Nigeria: Assaults On Election Services Elevate Considerations Forward of February Polls

Abuja, Nigeria — Police officers in southeast Nigeria say operatives killed three armed males on Monday when a gang attacked the workplace of the Unbiased Nationwide Electoral Fee, or INEC — one in every of a number of assaults on the fee’s workplaces forward of Nigeria’s polls in February. INEC officers have mentioned assaults on services won’t deter the fee from conducting the elections, however political observers say the assaults are already having an affect on the method.

Imo State police spokesman Michael Abbatam instructed journalists Monday that officers repelled an early morning assault on an INEC facility in Owerri, the state capital, killing three of the attackers and arresting two others.

He mentioned the police additionally recovered firearms, improvised explosive gadgets and a few autos.

The attackers threw explosives into the ability, destroying a part of the constructing and a few autos earlier than the officers halted the assault.

This was the third assault on INEC services in Imo state up to now two weeks, following related assaults on a facility in close by Orlu district final week and one other one on the native workplace in Oru West in the beginning of December.

No group has claimed accountability for the assaults however authorities have in latest previous blamed an outlawed separatist group, the Indigenous Folks of Biafra or IPOB, for elevated restiveness within the southeast. IPOB has denied involvement.

“Between 2019 and now there have been over 53 assaults and the attackers have gotten extra daring. We’re involved about how this could affect on residents’ confidence, even on the a part of INEC. Now we have seen the devastating affect on this within the elections in 2019 that INEC even needed to delay elections in some quarters,” mentioned Paul James, election program coordinator on the Youth Initiative for Advocacy, Progress and Development, a non-profit group that screens elections in Nigeria.

Imo state is without doubt one of the sturdy bases for the Biafra separatist motion and makes an attempt by authorities to crackdown on separatists have led to a rise in violence there.

INEC services in Ebonyi, Osun and Ogun states have additionally been just lately focused and attacked.

“Why these assaults are growing is the truth that INEC is insistent on making an attempt to enhance the processes of the elections. The INEC chair has talked about that they’ll deploy expertise for the election. That is simply an try to distract INEC. This election goes to be aggressive. if these coordinated assaults proceed it’ll have an effect on their confidence to even induce the method in these states which are affected,” mentioned James.

INEC spokesman Festus Okoye mentioned in a press release that no essential election supplies had been destroyed in Monday’s assault.

The fee on Monday formally began the distribution of Everlasting Voter Playing cards (PVCs) and the method will run by means of January.

Nonetheless, Godbless Otubure, chief of one other pro-democracy group, the Able to Lead Africa Initiative, says the assaults are affecting voter confidence forward of subsequent yr’s polls.

“Individuals are calling us saying they do not need to go get their PVCs anymore. They only do not need to die. Our accountability is to interact Nigerians on the necessity to vote and take part. We do not management the safety equipment. I can’t assure any Nigerian proper now that I can name the army to reply to something as a result of I am not in authority,” mentioned Otubure.

Nigerians go to the polls on February 25 to elect a frontrunner that can succeed Muhammadu Buhari, who’s exiting after two phrases workplace.

INEC says will probably be counting on expertise to electronically transmit outcomes and warranted Nigerians that the assaults on services won’t have an effect on the 2023 basic polls.