Arsonists attack, burn INEC office in Enugu

The office of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Igboeze North Local Government Area of Enugu State has been burnt down by arsonists.

INEC’s National Commissioner, Information and Voter Education Committee, Festus Okoye, said this in a statement.

Okoye disclosed that there were no casualties recorded in the attack that occurred around 11:48 pm on Sunday, July 3.

He explained that the “arsonists overpowered the security guards, forced their way into the premises, and set the building ablaze.

Okoye said 748 ballot boxes, 24 voting cubicles, office furniture and equipment were destroyed “in spite of the best effort of the Enugu State Fire Service deployed from Nsukka.”

Okoye stated that the commission is working to ascertain the status of voter registration machines for the ongoing Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) exercise as well as uncollected Permanent Voters Cards (PVCs) locked up in the fireproof cabinet.

He added that the incident has been reported to the police for investigation and lamented that the attack happened “in the middle of the voters registration exercise.”

The INEC official recalled that similar attacks were carried out on INEC offices in Igboeze South, Udeni Local Government Areas, and Enugu State Headquarters of the commission all in May 2021 but has recovered from these attacks.

“The commission will continue to work with the security agencies and the emergency services to protect our facilities,” Okoye said.