Posted by By AKEEB ALARAPE, Ibadan on
Two corps members and an official of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) have been arrested by security personnel in Ogbomoso over the discovery of two Direct Data Capture (DDC) machines of INEC in the house of Chief Saka Balogun, chief of staff in the 11-month-old administration of Otunba Adebayo Alao-Akala in Oyo State.
Two corps members and an official of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) have been arrested by security personnel in Ogbomoso over the discovery of two Direct Data Capture (DDC) machines of INEC in the house of Chief Saka Balogun, chief of staff in the 11-month-old administration of Otunba Adebayo Alao-Akala in Oyo State.
This is coming at a time the State Security Services (SSS) has threatened to arrest strongman of Ibadan politics, Alhaji Lamidi Adedibu over the snatching of its operator's gun in Ibadan last week.
The three suspects were said to have been apprehended by vigilant SSS officials after a tip off from members of the public about alleged multiple voter registration in Balogun's house.
INEC Resident Commissioner in the state, Alhaji Isyaku Maigoro, confirmed the incident to newsmen in Ibadan on Sunday, saying he had sent one of his directors to monitor the situation.
Sources at Ogbomoso disclosed that they noticed a rush of people, who had already registered with INEC, to Balogun's house for the exercise and went there to confirm what was going on only to discover the illegal exercise.
Discovering that the lid has been blown off their illegal activities, the three suspects were said to have attempted to smuggle the two machines out of Balogun's house with the aid of a motorbike, but were caught by vigilant neighbours around the area.
Investigations later revealed that the two machines were meant for Ogbomoso North Local Government Area but found their way to Balogun's house, which was within Ogbomoso South Local Government.
In a telephone chat with Mr. Vincent Adelodun, one of the suspects, he absolved himself from the crime, explaining that he could not understand how the two machines got to Balogun's house as he dispatched the machines to Ward 2 at Ojude Akinbola in Ogbomoso.
His words: 'I didn't send machine to Balogun's House. I only sent to Ward 2 at Ojude Akinbola. If you know the schedule of my work I cannot send the machine to the home of any individual. I didn't know anything about this matter. I sent out four machines today in my schedule."
An eyewitness, Alhaji Salmon Buhari, claimed that Adelodun knew about the crime as he (Adelodun) was pleading with security personnel and other INEC officials intimated about the incident to bury the matter before it got to the knowledge of INEC authority in Ibadan.
Buhari, who claimed that multiple registration of voters has been on in Ogbomoso for sometime with active connivance of desperate politicians in the town, however, expressed his annoyance with the police authorities in the state, who have been looking the other way in the whole scam.
According to him, when the Sunday incident was reported to policemen at Sunsun Police Station, opposite Ogbomoso South Local Government secretariat, they refused to intervene, claiming that INEC matter was a national issue and has nothing to do with them.
When contacted, police spokesman, Mr. Olu Akinmoladun, an Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP), said he was not aware of the incident as nobody had briefed him on the arrest of any person in connection with INEC DDC machines at Ogbomoso.
In another development, the self-acclaimed strongman of Ibadan politics, Alhaji Lamidi Adedibu, may be in for trouble over last Thursday's attack on Senator Lekan Balogun at the premises of the Oyo State House of Assembly as the State Security Services (SSS) has threatened to arrest him if the gun of its operative snatched by hoodlums was not returned.
Daily Sun gathered that the state's director of SSS, Mr. Raymond Nkidirim, had vowed to launch an attack on the Molete residence of Adedibu and arrest him if the gun seized from his official was not returned and apology tendered for the action of the hoodlums.
'The director told Baba that he was ready to lose his job over the missing gun but vowed to arrest Adedibu, handcuff him and parade him in the streets of Ibadan even if it would cost him his job," the source hinted.
It was also learnt that the septuagenarian politician has been making contact with a prominent Islamic leader in the state to help him apologize to President Olusegun Obasanjo, over the ugly incident at Oyo House of Assembly premises last week.
Senator Balogun told Daily Sun that he had reported Adedibu to the president, the national leader of their party, on his attack. The embittered senator insisted that only Adedibu's arrest and prosecution would ensure peace in the state.
'I am insisting that Lamidi Adedibu should be arrested and prosecuted. Ditto Tokyo. The two men were the arrowhead of the attack on me." Balogun said.
He said the denial of Tokyo at the weekend further confirmed his involvement in the attack on him and his supporters, adding that he would sue both Adedibu and Tokyo if the police failed to act.
'As of today, I cannot say specifically whether any arrest has been made. Some said the police have arrested some people. Others said no. It is still a matter of rumour, which I intend to confirm, but I assure you, if nothing is done to bring the two people to justice, I will initiate private prosecution," the senator threatened.
Sources at the SSS office also informed Daily Sun that a manhunt has been launched for the hoodlums responsible for the attack on Balogun and the security personnel attached to him for possible prosecution.