GENERAL ELECTIONS: POLICE CONFIRM OFFICIALS IN VIRAL VIDEO TO BE INEC ENGINEERS, NO ARRESTS OR SEIZURES MADE
The Nigeria Police Force has debunked rumours that some individuals were arrested in Maitama, Abuja, with electoral materials and Bi-Modal Voters Accreditation System (BVAS) machines by operatives of the Nigeria Police Force. The police confirmed that the individuals seen in the viral video are staff of Emperor Technology, outsourcing engineering services to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
The police revealed that operatives of the Nigeria Police Force Intelligence Bureau (FIB) acted on a tip from residents of an area in Maitama who reported suspicious activities, visited the location, interviewed the occupants, and conducted a search on the house. In the course of the search, some electoral materials and BVAS machines were discovered in their possession. However, upon contacting INEC, it was confirmed that the occupants of the house were staff of Emperor Technology who were immediately released to go about their lawful business.
The Nigeria Police Force has urged members of the public to disregard false and misconstrued narratives being spread by some sections of the media about the arrest of these individuals and their link with BVAS manipulation. They also charged reporters and media houses to endeavour to do due diligence and ascertain the veracity of the information in the public space before spreading such to avoid being victims of the “breaking news syndrome.”
Furthermore, the Nigerian police urged all and sundry to avoid the creation and spread of misinformation and disinformation, which is capable of causing disaffection between the populace and state actors, especially at a critical and sensitive moment in the country’s democracy.
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