Hassan Zaggi
The Nigeria Police Force has said that the reports in a section of the media alleging the arrest of some scammers with electoral materials and Bi-Modal Voters Accreditation System (BVAS) machines by its operatives in the Maitama area of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) is not true.
It would be recalled that late Tuesday, news filtered around in both social and conventional media that some persons were arrested by the police in Maitama area of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) in connection with bringing down the website of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
In a statement by its Spokesman, Olumiyiwa Adejobi, the Nigeria Police Force said: “Operatives of the Nigeria Police Force Intelligence Bureau (FIB), acting 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.”
The statement continued that: ”However, when contacted, the Independent National Electoral Commission, confirmed that the occupants of the house are staff of Emperor Technology, outsourcing engineering services to the INEC, and they were immediately released to go about their lawful business.
“The Force, while urging well-meaning members of the public to discountenance the false and misconstrued narrative being spread by some sections of the media about the arrest of these individuals and their link with BVAS manipulation, charged reporters and media houses to endeavor to do due diligence and ascertain the veracity of the information on the public space before spreading such to avoid being victims of the “breaking news syndrome”.
The Nigeria Police Force further urged Nigerians to avoid the creation and spread of misinformation and disinformation which, it stressed, is capable of causing disaffection between the populace and state actors more so as the country is in a critical and sensitive moment in our democracy.
