NIGERIA. Bayelsa State: The State Command of the Nigerian Hunters and Forest Security Service recovered approximately 320 Permanent Voters Cards (PVCs) inside an unfinished building along the Imiringi/Ogbia road in Bayelsa State.
The State Command of the service, Moses Okano, revealed this to reporters while delivering the PVCs to the Independent Electoral Commission (INEC) in the state, saying that the perpetrators fled into the bush upon seeing his men. Okano said the PVCs were discovered inside a bag while his men were on routine patrol in the area.
On Tuesday, I was in charge of our routine patrol. We’ve been combing the bushes because of what we’ve heard in the woods. Okano explained that they began in Azikoro and progressed through Elebele.
“During our round, we came across an unfinished building in the bush and heard some noise, so we used our usual method of operation to find out who was there, and the people on sighting started jumping out through the windows of the unfinished building.” So, we could enter the building and discover the abandoned voter cards.
So, knowing full well that these are Federal Government property and that the only authority authorised or permitted by law to keep custody of these items is INEC, we must recover them and decide whether or not to bring them to the commission.
Receiving the item on behalf of Bayelsa State Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) Alex Hart, INEC Administrative Secretary, Umo-Obong, praised the local hunters for their efforts and assured them that the commission would investigate the act. Hart stated that our investigation would determine whether the PVCs were discarded during the printing process or belonged to voters.
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