Information reaching 247ureports.com from sources in Bauchi indicate that truck loads of materials believed to be sensitive materials from the Independent National Electoral Commission [INEC] were intercepted in Gurazo, Bauchi State by a mob of vigilante citizens. The truck load of material were intercepted on the evening of Saturday December 20.
At the time of interception by the angry youths, the trucks were reported to be without police escorts. The trucks were not marked as INEC trucks. But as the youths realized that the suspicious trucks were carrying INEC materials, they pounced on the trucks demanding for the contents to be opened – or the youths will set the truck and its contents on fire. Amidst the exchange, the Nigerian police arrived the scene.
The men of the Nigerian police force were quick to act to rescue the truck and its contents. They halted the youths from setting fire to the truck. The police then told the youths that the police commissioner had demanded for the truck to be brought back to Bauchi police headquarters. The police public relations officer told 247ureports.com that the police had decided on trucking the vehicles back to Bauchi police headquarters in order to have the contents of the truck opened in the presence of journalists and politicians.
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The police image maker added that the truck was brought to the station and the contents were opened to the public. He confirmed that there were no sensitive INEC materials contained in the vehicle. “Only ballot boxes were found inside the truck“. Three hundred and fourteen [314] cartons containing one thousand and fifty [1050] pieces of ballot boxes. He said that the truck was coming from Lagos headed for INEC headquarters in Gombe, without police escort or any identifiable marker showing the truck was carrying INEC materials. The image maker added that the police had to release the truck to continue on its journey “nothing incriminating was found“.
However, the INEC officials who were present at the police station refused to comment when asked why the INEC chose to use public transport to transport its ballot boxes. They also refused to comment on why the truck did not have a police escort. They refused comment citing that the INEC headquarter had asked them not to comment. According to laws governing the transport of election materials by INEC, an INEC truck and a police escort is supposed to be used to transport all INEC election materials.
A credible but unverified source who was present at the scene told 247ureports.com on the telephone that the trucks were actually carrying sensitive materials – ballot papers. The source who is a government official in Bauchi government indicated that the police – after rescuing the truck from the angry youths – escorted the truck to a house located inside Bauchi GRA where the ballot papers were removed. The truck was then re-diverted to the police station. The source claims that the ballot papers were pre-thumbed ballot papers in favor of a high profile candidate in Bauchi.
Calls and text messages placed to the Bauchi State Government were not answered or responded to.
