Fire razes INEC office in Osun, a section burnt down
The office of the Independent National Electoral Commission was on Thursday set ablazed by unknown arsonists in Ede South local government area of Osun State.
The incident was said to have occured in the early hours of the day. Some sections of the office were burnt by the inferno.
It was further learnt that items like knife, slices of bread, a keg containing petrol and a fez cap were recovered from the scene of the fire, raising suspicion of arson.
Confirming the incident, the National Commissioner & Chairman Information and Voter Education Committee, INEC, Abuja, Festus Okoye in a press release ascribed the inferno to an attack launched by unknown persons on the building.
He said, “the Resident Electoral Commissioner for Osun State, Dr. Mutiu Agboke, reported that our office in Ede South Local Government Area was attacked and set ablaze. The incident occurred in the early hours of this morning when some unidentified persons attacked the building and set a portion of it ablaze.
“Fortunately, the damage to our Ede South Local Government was limited to a section of the building and only some furniture items were destroyed.
“The attention of the Nigeria Police Force and other security and safety agencies has been
drawn to the incidents and they have commenced investigation. With just 106 days to the 2023 General Election when the Commission has commenced the movement of materials to our offices nationwide, these simultaneous attacks are very worrisome indeed.
“Accordingly, the Commission has convened an emergency meeting of the Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES) tomorrow Friday 11th November 2023 to discuss the disturbing trend.”
