Jega warns INEC officers against rigging

Details: Category: Politics; Published on Tuesday, 08 March 2011 08:04; Written by Daily Trust; Hits: 1958

Any Electoral Officer (EO) found to have manipulated results in favour of any of the political parties in the forthcoming general elections would be prosecuted, Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Professor Attahiru Jega said yesterday.

Speaking during a retreat for the EOs in Abuja, Jega said the commission will not hesitate to arrest and prosecute any electoral officer that connives with politicians to manipulate the outcome of elections during the April polls.

He said “I urge you to turn a new leaf; I know that most of you need not be asked to do that but if there is anybody who thinks that the job of an Electoral Officer is to connive with politicians and to take money and allow fraud to be perpetrated and to declare false results or fraudulent results then they should be prepared to answer to the consequences of their actions.

“We will not condone it, we will not protect anybody who does that, we will do our best to apprehend those who have done that and make sure that they are prosecuted. I am saying this with the mind that most of you are doing your honest jobs but there are a few bad eggs among us who continue to give us a bad name and it is important for us to do self cleansing so that this negative perception among Nigerians about INEC as an institution will be cured once and for all.”

Jega tasked the EOs to work hard towards ensuring credible, free and fair elections by April promising that the commission will continue to dialogue with government on the need for better remuneration for its staff.

He said warned the officials not to allow themselves to be used to frustrate the aspiration of the people for credible elections saying “Many of you out there are very honest people doing your best under difficult circumstances but we must recognize the fact that there are also some of us, who are not doing their jobs the way they should do it and who, rather than adding value to the work of the commission and to the success of the assignment that we do, are actually undermining the work the commission.”

Meanwhile, the commission said it is still studying the judgment of the federal high court that declared the order of elections laid out in the Electoral Act by the National Assembly as null and void.

Speaking on the matter, Chief Press Secretary to INEC Chairman, Kayode Idowu, said the issue has to do with policy and requires a decision of the entire commission.