THE Economic and Financial Crime Commission (EFCC) has apprehended over 65 persons for vote buying and inducement across 28 states during the governorship and state assembly elections.
A statement issued on Saturday, March 18, signed by the spokesperson of the Commission, Wilson Uwujaren, said that 13 suspects were nabbed by operatives on election monitoring duty at the Kaduna Zonal Command.
Also, the teams monitoring the polls in the Port Harcourt Zone arrested a total of 12 people for various offences bordering on inducing voters with money to vote for their preferred candidates.
The statement further disclosed that four vote buyers were arrested in Calabar.
Thirteen suspects, consisting of 10 males and 3 females, were arrested in Kaduna State.
The statement added, “They were apprehended by operatives working on intelligence or chanced upon them during the monitoring exercise. A suspect allegedly involved in vote buying was nabbed at School Road, Unguwan Rimi Kaduna. The suspect who initially resisted arrest, is however in custody, pending the conclusion of the investigation.”
EFCC operatives caught Buhari Muhammed in Polling Unit 002 Dogara Yaro Dagari area with voter coupons which he confessed would be used to trace and pay those who voted for his party.
The Commission also apprehended the women leader of a political party, Esther Edem, as well as Edet Etim and Asanwana Eyo, for alleged vote buying in Calabar.
According to the statement, “The Woman Leader, who had a list of suspected voters, their account numbers and thousands of Naira in cash, was apprehended inside an uncompleted building, beside her Ward in Calabar South, while Etim and Eyo were arrested at Ward 12, Unit 11, at Kings Memorial School by Inyang Street, Abasi Obori, Calabar South.
“The duo of Etim and Eyo had with them their own lists and money they allegedly used in buying votes.”
The Gombe Zonal Command of the Commission also recorded the arrests of 10 persons for alleged voter inducement.
The investigation by the EFCC, however, revealed that the mode of operation of the suspects was through cash, transfer of money, coupons and sending recharge cards to eligible voters in order to induce them to vote for their candidates.
The ICIR earlier reported that 20 persons were nabbed for vote-buying and financial inducement in Kwara State
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