Kogi gov election: Group raises alarm over arms acquisition by politicians

Ahead of the governorship election inKogi State, on December 3, a group in the state, Kogi Conscience Forum, has raised the alarm over the bloodbath being planned for the state by politicians bent on winning the race by all means with the acquisition of AK-47 rifles and other dangerous weapons.In a petition submitted to the Inspector General of Police, Hafiz Ringim, a copy of which was made available to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), the forum disclosed that it had information about the acquisition of 500 pieces of AK-47 assault rifles by a political party (name withheld) in readiness for distribution to thugs to unleash mayhem during the election.The petition, signed by Joseph Adama and Abdullahi Usman, President and Secretary-General respectively, alleged that part of the plot of the political party and its supporters for the December polls was the production of mass units of fake army and police uniforms for use by thugs to deceive unsuspecting electorate, that they are genuine security agencies assigned on electoral duties.'The plan on election day is that these thugs would invade some strategic polling booths earmarked for the operation, with guns, fire sporadically and in the ensuing melee, threaten voters with axes, cutlasses and other dangerous weapons, hold INEC staff and other party agents hostage while snatching ballot papers and boxes, thumb printing and stuffing the boxes,' it said.The forum further noted that, 'the result of the rigged election will then be forced on INEC staff and other polling and party agents to sign under duress' adding that 'the crime will be successfully carried out if not nipped in the bud as was witnessed in past elections.'Recalling that the conduct of the March 2008 re-run elections in the state witnessed a similar instance of political thugs dressed in police uniforms, storming a polling unit and snatching ballot boxes while voting was in advanced stage, the forum stated that up till this day, nothing had been heard of the criminal act or any culprit arrested.'Our fear is that not only will the weapons be used to achieve malpractices during the election, in the aftermath of the elections, the distributors of the guns (politicians), may not be able to mop them up as it was the case in previous elections,'the forum declared.
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