Officials from the Independent Electorial Commission (INEC), performing electoral duties, were reportedly held hostage in the Brass Local Government Area of Bayelsa State, as announced by the commission on Sunday.
‘The Commission is closely watching the situation in Brass LGA of Bayelsa State where our officials are held hostage,’ the commission said in a statement on its verified X platform.
INEC expressed strong disapproval of the action, deeming it detrimental to credible elections, and called on security agencies, including the police, to swiftly intervene and rescue the electoral officers.
‘We call on the security agencies to immediately facilitate their release,’ the commission said.
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Africa Today News, New York, reported that the oil-rich South-South state experienced protests on Sunday, accusing result manipulation as the collation of November 11, 2023, election results commenced. Protesters, including state commissioners and lawmakers, asserted that there were no elections in the Nembe area of the state.
On Saturday, Bayelsa State Governor, Duoye Diri, alleged that Timipre Sylva, the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, was involved in the electoral violence that occurred in the Nembe-Bassambiri area of the state.
In the current election, Diri, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate, is pursuing re-election for an additional four-year term.
‘We have been raising the issue of the violent character and person of Timipre Sylva. Over the years, in every election he is involved in, you experience violence, you experience lawlessness, and even in Nembe-Bassambiri, the name and the character behind what is happening in Nembe-Bassambiri is Timipre Sylva,’ Diri said.
Sylva’s tenure as Bayelsa governor spanned from May 2007 to April 2008 and then from May 2008 to January 2012. Additionally, he assumed the role of Minister of State for Petroleum Resources from 2019 to 2023.