Featured Politics News

Non-payment of allowances to INEC’s ad hoc staff causes delay at AD gubernatorial candidate’s polling unit

By Abisola THOMPSON

The non-payment of allowances to some of the ad hoc staffers of INEC on Saturday caused delay in the commencement of accreditation and voting in the polling unit of AD’s gubernatorial candidate, Chief Salis Owolabi.

TBI Africa said the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reported that as  at 9:40 a.m., on Saturday, intending voters were yet to start voting at Polling Unit 064,  Ward 3, Atunrase Estate Phase II, Gbagada in Lagos state.

The polling unit was where  the Governorship Candidate of the Alliance for Democracy (AD), Chief Owolabi Salis was to cast his vote also.

NAN gathered that the INEC ad-hoc staff members   were allegedly protesting at Ikosi Local Development Council Area over the non-payment of their allowances.

Some intending voters, who were waiting for the INEC officials at the polling unit, said they did not want to be disfranchised.

Some of them who spoke to NAN said they had been at the polling unit as early as 7:45 a.m.

They condemned the delay, saying that the same happened at the last the Presidential and National Assembly elections on Feb. 23.

However, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Lagos State said that it was aware of pockets of protest by some ad hoc staff over alleged non-payment of honoraria for the Feb. 23 Presidential and National Assembly elections.

The INEC spokesman in Lagos,  Mr Femi  Akinbiyi, said that the commission  was making efforts  to address the issue.

Akinbiyi said that the protest was not because of INEC’s  non-payment of honoraria for the Presidential and National Assembly elections.

He said that there were rumours  that INEC  gave money to some ad hoc staff while some did not get.

According to him, the ad hoc staffers started to protest over the development thinking that INEC was paying some people while others were left out.

“INEC does not pay cash to any of its ad hoc staff; all payment was done through electronic payment to the bank accounts of its ad hoc staff.

“If anyone had not seen his or her own allowance, it may be due to some issues emanating from  his or her bank.

“Each ad hoc staffer is entitled to receive N9,000  as honorarium, N3,000 for movement  and N1,000 for feeding;  making a total of  N13, 000 for each election.

“ The only time we paid cash of N4,500 was  when we paid the training allowance.’’

He said that the money causing problems at present was an alleged sum being distributed by some politicians to INEC ‘s  ad hoc staff.

“It was alleged that some of the ad hoc staff got while some did not.

“When we heard of it, we investigated it and found out that the money being distributed by some politicians to our ad hoc staff was the cause of the wahala (problem).

“ We don’t pay by cash to our staff, we paid all their money into their accounts.

“Some got bank alerts, some people didn’t get because all of them are not using the same banks, and also some banks worked half day on Friday.

“All these issues will not allow them all to get their bank alerts at the same time. It is not what INEC is paying them that they were protesting against, but the politicians’ money.

“When they (ad hoc) saw the money, they thought INEC was the one sharing it. We don’t handle cash,’’ he said.

Akinbiyi said that INEC had notified the security agencies about the development.

He assured all that the situation was under control as the staff of the commission had been going round to explain the situation to the ad hoc staff and appeal to them.

“They will get to the polling units very soon,’’ he said.

 

 

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