Imo Attack: INEC Makes Contact With Two Missing Staff

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has established contact with two of its staff missing after yesterday’s attack by gunmen in Ihitte Uboma Local Government Area of Imo State.

It would be recalled that the gunmen who stormed the commission’s registration centre in the local government area shot dead a staff of the commission.

The commission said on Friday in a statement signed by the National Commissioner and Chairman, Information and Voter Education Committee, Festus Okoye, that it has made contact with the missing staff members and that they would soon rejoin their families.

“The Commission has now established contact with two of our staff missing after yesterday’s attack in Ihitte Uboma. They are safe and will soon be reunited with their families.

“The safety of staff remains a primary concern to the Commission. We will continue to ensure that no staff is put in harm’s way while working with the security agencies and community leaders to protect them and facilitate their work.”

He said: “Further to the unfortunate incident in Imo State in which our staff was killed by gunmen in Ihitte Uboma Local Government Area yesterday, the Commission has decided to suspend the ongoing Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) exercise in all the 54 additional centres created to facilitate the registration of voters across the State.”

According to him, “the exercise will now be confined to our state and local government area offices except in Orsu, Njaba and Ihitte Uboma where it is suspended indefinitely.

This decision follows a further report from the Resident Electoral Commissioner, Prof. Francis C. Ezeonu, of threats to our staff involved in the exercise in Ehime Mbano Local Government Area.”

The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has, however, distanced itself from the attack.

It warned those behind the barbaric attacks to stop or be ready to reap the reward of their atrocities.

In a statement by its Media and Publicity Secretary, Emma Powerful, the group alleged that the attackers were being sponsored by politicians to jeopardise its decision to actualize Biafra Republic.

The statement reads in part, “We strongly condemn the attack on INEC staff at Ihite Uboma LGA of Imo State. We are also warning these traitors and enemies of Biafra behind these barbaric attacks to stop or be ready to reap the reward of their atrocities.

“IPOB cannot afford to allow them to continue to terrorise our people or demonise our peaceful organisation as some uninformed people are pointing accusing fingers at us.

“IPOB is not happy with these criminal activities going on in our region because we don’t want this to continue and we are going to expose those behind this evil in the region.

“Anybody involved in this act will regret it. We totally disassociate from this act of criminality. IPOB volunteers and ESN have no hands in this criminal act that criminals randomly carry out against our people.

“The masterminds are being sponsored by unfortunate politicians thinking they can jeopardise our decision to make Biafra freedom a reality.

“We have made it clear to the public severally that IPOB members are not unknown gunmen and we cannot be because we have objective which is to restore Biafra as a free, independent and sovereign nation.

“We want to make it publicly known that IPOB and its security units did not attack INEC officers in Imo State.

“We are aware that Nigeria Government and their collaborators are sponsoring these criminal groups to attack our people in the name of IPOB to instigate crisis so people can disassociate themselves from IPOB activities and the entire world will see IPOB as terror group but they will fail and will not raise their ugly heads again. We promise them so.

“IPOB will not relent in discovering those behind this devilish activities and expose them.”