Rivers rerun: INEC staff kidnapped in Etche and another hand chopped off

A staff of the Independent National Electoral Commission conducting the legislative election on Saturday in Etche local government area of Rivers State has been kidnapped.

A correspondent covering the election on Saturday reported about a female INEC staff crying while alerting the state headquarters about the incident.

Over 700 staff of the commission were mobilised and deployed to the area amidst heavy military presence on Friday in preparation for the election.

Efforts to get the INEC spokesperson in the state did not yield any fruit as all the calls put across to her were not answered.

The state Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Nnamdi Omoni, when contacted said he was not yet aware of the development.

”But if it is true, we are going to launch an investigation into the matter to get to the person who did it,” he said

In another development, at Igbo Etche community the situation turned bloody as hoodlums reportedly chopped off the hand of an official of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC.


Meanwhile, the victim is said to have been taken to INEC headquarters in Port Harcourt for treatment.