…says he registered in Abuja in  and in Lokoja

By Omeiza Ajayi

THE Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC yesterday affirmed that Governor Yahaya Bello of Kogi State registered twice as a voter.

INEC speaking through its national commissioner, Prince Solomon Soyebi, INEC national commissioner and chairman, information and voter education committee (IVEC), said the governor first registered in Abuja in January, 2011 and subsequently last Tuesday in Lokoja.

INEC

Soyebi vowed dire consequences for the INEC staff that may have collaborated in the double registration.

The INEC statement on the development said: “It has come to the attention of INEC that Gov Bello of Kogi state registered as a voter for the second time on Tuesday May 23, 2017 in Government House, Lokoja, the state capital,” Soyebi said.

“His first registration was on January 30, 2011 in Wuse zone 4, Abuja.

“The governor’s double registration and doing so outside lNEC’s designated centres are both illegal.

“For the on-going continuous voter registration [CVR) exercise, INEC has designated a centre in each of the country’s 774 local government areas including FCT’s six area councils.”

The commission, therefore, dissociated itself from the governor’s action while it also pledged to take disciplinary action against its staff who did the second registration for Bello.

“We wish to make it clear that no INEC staff was authorised by the commission to re-register him or any citizen or to do so outside our designated CVR centres.

“The commission is taking disciplinary action against the INEC staff involved.

“As for the state governor, section 308 (l) (a) of the 1999 constitution (as amended], precludes lNEC from prosecuting him while in office.

“However, the commission wishes to state that it has cancelled his second and illegal registration forthwith.”