Ondo INEC office fire caused by faulty electrical connection – Police

Osagie Otabor, Akure

The Ondo Police Command has said that the fire outbreak at the Akure office of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) was caused by faulty electrical connections.

It said talks of saboteurs causing the fire were untrue.

Over 5000 card readers to be used for the October 10 governorship election were razed in the inferno.

The card readers were kept in two containers inside the premises of INEC.

Some political parties had called for a thorough investigation into the incident for the purposes of arresting the perpetrators.

Ondo Police Commissioner, Salami Bolaji, who spoke at a press briefing in Akure said the Ondo Fire Service report on the incident has put to rest issues saboteurs setting containers ablaze.

Salami stated that any other findings would be made public.

READ ALSO: Ondo: APC accuses PDP thugs of destroying billboards, posters

He said, “Investigation into the incident is out. The fire was caused by a faulty electrical connection and all the smart card readers were burnt The smart cards were kept in two containers on the premises of INEC and the air conditioners were kept on for 24 hours.

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“This will put to rest speculations that the fire was caused by saboteurs. If there are other findings we will let you know. For now, the major cause is faulty electrical connections.

“This report is final from the fire service. They have the authority to investigate fire incidents in Akure.”

On the reported destruction of campaign posters and banners by political opponents, Salami said his men were on the alert to arrest perpetrators.

“We are working hard to curtail political violence. We are meeting with political leaders to tell their followers to desist from attacking each other. We are investigating all aspects of the killing in Idanre.”