A BVAS with the following number, 09/18/10/012, that was discovered in his hands was questioned and revealed 216 accredited voters, despite the fact that the result sheets indicated 250 votes were cast.
Gabriel Agabi Akwaji, a lecturer in the Department of Philosophy at the University of Calabar, was detained by members of the Cross River state police command for pretending to be Dr. Dominic Abakedi, an ad hoc officer of the Independent National Election Commission (INEC).
During the presidential and national assembly elections held on Saturday, February 25, Akwaji—who was dressed in an INEC reflective jacket—was apprehended at the collation center in Okpoma, Yala Local Government Area of the state, in possession of a phony Bi-Modal Voter Accreditation System, or BVA machine.
Dr. Abakedi, the fictitious ad hoc official, was assigned to the Yache ward of the Yala Local Government Area, but Akwaji said that Abakedi instructed him to act in his place and carry out the task.
When the collation officer could not be located after the elections on Saturday at 6:00 p.m., trouble started. After being cut off from the outside world since Saturday night, Mr. Akwaji is reported to have arrived to the Okpoma, Yala Local Government Area headquarters at 2:00 PM on Sunday in the company of political party leaders.
As his whereabouts were investigated, a fight broke out, involving Sunday EmalujI of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) and Alphonsus Eba, Esq., the state chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Mr. Akwaji was then detained and sent to the INEC Area Office in Ogoja, where he asserted that Dr. Abakedi had asked him to take his position.
A BVAS with the following number, 09/18/10/012, that was discovered in his hands was questioned and revealed 216 accredited voters, despite the fact that the result sheets indicated 250 votes were cast.
The suspect was quickly taken to the Ogoja Area Command so that the Criminal Investigation Unit could question him further.
Zannah Shettima, the district’s chief of police who oversees elections, declined to comment on the matter and said he hadn’t yet had a briefing.
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