Card Readers Destroyed As Fire Guts Ondo INEC Head Office

Several card readers were damaged as fire gutted the head office of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Akure, Thursday. 

Media Adviser/Chief Press Secretary to the Independent National Electoral Commission, Rotimi Oyekanmi confirmed the incident to Channels Television.

Men of the Fire Service are on the ground to put out the inferno which started about 8 pm and gutted the container housing Smart Card Readers, the electoral body tweeted, Thursday.

“The National Commissioner, Barrister Festus Okoye, who is in Ondo State in connection with preparations for the Ondo State Governorship election scheduled for 10th October 2020, rushed to the office at about 8 pm,” INEC added.

Although the cause of the inferno is yet to be known, Barrister Okoye assured that an investigation would be carried out to unravel what triggered the fire.

Fire broke out today, Thursday September 10,2020 at the Ondo State Head Office of the Independent National Electoral Commission in Akure.  

Some staff of the Commission and the Administrative Secretary of the State, Mr Popoola were also at the INEC office.

INEC had earlier said it is leaving no stone unturned to ensure the safety of voters in the election and has rolled out a no face masks, no voting policy as Nigeria battles COVID-19.

“It is mandatory for every voter to wear a face mask or face covering without which the voter would not be allowed to vote,” the Chairman of the electoral body, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, said at the briefing of the Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19 in Abuja Thursday.

The INEC boss while giving insight into the nature of face masks voters are expected to wear during the elections, said the electorates do not need surgical masks to cast their ballots.

He explained that “a face covering will be sufficient for a voter to be accredited to vote.”