By Harry Awurumibe, Editor, Abuja Bureau
The Independent National Electoral Commission INEC has dismissed with a wave of the hand the claims by the Socio-economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) accusing the Commission’s Chairman, Professor Mahmood Yakubu of flouting a court order regarding the prosecution of electoral offenders.
INEC National Commissioner and Chairman, Information and Voter Education Committee, Sam Olumekun who disclosed this in a statement Wednesday in Abuja, said the Commission’s attention was drawn to media reports attributed to SERAP accusing the Commission of failure or neglect to prosecute electoral offenders arising from the 2023 General Election.
Olumekun said that SERAP had specifically accused the Commission of failure to engage independent counsels to prosecute unnamed Governors and Deputy Governors for sundry violations of electoral laws.
It also accused the Commission of failing to engage private lawyers to prosecute other electoral offences, including vote buying during the same election.
But reacting to the allegations, he said “these allegations are untrue and fly in the face of facts already in the public domain”.
However, INEC said in the first place, Governors and Deputy Governors have constitutional immunity from prosecution and that SERAP cannot be unaware of this constitutional provision.
It added that in any case, it has no record that anyone of them has been arrested, investigated and a prima facie case established to initiate their prosecution.
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