Arson: Ebonyi govt to fortify security at INEC offices

The Ebonyi government says it will fortify security at all Independent National  Electoral Commission (INEC) offices, among other facilities, across the state.

Chief Stanley Emegha, Security Consultant to the Government, made the disclosure on Tuesday while speaking on efforts to forestall the recent arson on the INEC office in Izzi Local Government Area.

Emegha described the incident as unfortunate and thanked God that no life was lost in the incident.

“The problem is that when we deploy the Ebubeagu security outfit to such facilities, some people would start insinuating that they want to hijack electoral materials.

“We would, however, not succumb to such cheap blackmail but ensure that such facilities are adequately protected across the state.

“We would, in collaboration with other security agencies in the state, deploy joint security outfits at all INEC offices among other public facilities across the state,” he said.

He noted that the arsonists thought that Permanent Voters Cards (PVCs) and other sensitive materials were at the affected INEC office but fortunately, they were not.