The Independent National Electoral Commission on Friday denied arrest of the Resident Commissioner in Edo State, Dr. Johnson Alalibo Sinikiem.
The commission said rather than arrest and detention, the REC was merely invited to make some clarifications over issues bordering on the primaries held by one of the political parties in the state.
“The Commission can confirm that the REC was invited. However, the Edo State Police Command has issued a statement to clarify the situation, saying that the REC was only invited to provide insight into some technical issues regarding our processes and nothing more. He was neither detained nor is he personally under investigation as media reports suggested,” said Festus Okoye, INEC’s National Commissioner for Voter Education and Information.
The commission however frowned at the invitation, saying that the police could have demanded for a much junior officer or at best visit the REC in his office for needed clarifications.
“While we welcome the clarification by the Police Command, we wish to point out that any other official of the Commission assigned by the REC could have provided the required insight. Alternatively, a visit to our State Office by the Commissioner of Police or his assigned representative could have achieved the same goal as has been the tradition in our collaborative relationship with security agencies,” the statement added
The commission said for the sake of emphasis, the REC in Edo State is a conscientious public officer and co-chairman of the Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES) at State level.
INEC stated further, “He was the sitting REC when the last Governorship election was conducted in Edo State on 19th September 2020 which was adjudged to be free, fair and credible.
“Any action capable of creating the impression of harassment of our officials or infringement of the independence of the Commission must be avoided, especially at this critical period of our preparations for the 2023 General Election.”