6 INEC staff arrested over missing PVCs

UMUAHIA—No fewer than six staff of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, in Abia State are now helping the police in their investigation over the discovery of scores of permanent voters’ card, PVC, in the house of a criminal suspect in Isiala Ngwa South of the state.
A reliable source from INEC state office in Umuahia confirmed the arrest of the staff and said they were at the Police Criminal Investigation Department where they were undergoing interrogation.
The matter, he said, had already been reported to the commission’s headquarters in Abuja and the affected cards already placed on interdiction because of the seriousness with which the commission viewed the offence.
The police, it was learned, were on the trail of a criminal suspect in Isiala Ngwa South area, when they stumbled on permanent voter’s cards in his house in the course of their investigation in an entirely different matter.
However, it was not possible to ascertain the nature of the crime they said suspect committed but the police were said to be on investigation in his house when they found the PVCs.

Surprised by the discovery, the police were said to have brought the PVCs to Abia State headquarters of INEC to confirm if they were genuine PVCs from the commission.
On confirmation that the cards were genuine from the commission, INEC then summoned its staff who worked in the area and queried them over the cards because they never reported any case of missing PVCs, either through stealing or snatching.
Unable to give satisfactory explanation over the cards discovered in the criminal suspect’s house, the police arrested about six staff of the commission who worked in the area to help them in their investigation.
When contacted, the Police Public Relations Officer, PPRO, Abia State command, promised to check their records and get back to our correspondent, but did not respond before press time.
Similarly, an inquiry sent to the CID boss through text message was not replied at press time.