Pressure To Compromise 2023 Polls: DHQ Clarifies General Lucky Irabor’s Statement

• The Director of Defence Information, Major General Jimmy Akpor has insisted that there is no pressure to compromise 2023 elections
• Akpor said this following a viral report which was attributed to the Chief of Defence Staff, General Lucky Irabor
• According to him, the said reports are false and a deliberate attempt to twist the words of the Army boss

Following a viral report on a statement credited Chief of Defence Staff, General Lucky Irabor, the Defence Headquarters has finally reacted to the latest development.

Recall that the DHQ had reportedly said the military and other security agencies in the country are under pressure from desperate politicians to compromise the 2023 general elections.

The report was debunked in a statement by the director of Defence Information, Major General Jimmy Akpor. He described the reports as “false and a deliberate or inadvertent attempt to twist what was said, to convey a sinister meaning.”

Read also

2023: INEC promises Nigerians, insists country set for best general elections in history

The statement read in part:

"The attention of the Defence Headquarters has been drawn to several headlines and news purporting to suggest that the Chief of Defence Staff, General Lucky Irabor CFR, had alluded to the military (and other security agencies) being under pressure to compromise the 2023 elections. This impression was reportedly made during the 61st Session of the State House Briefing, which featured the Chief of Defence State on 8 December 2022. The Defence Headquarters however, wishes to say categorically that, this impression is not only erroneous, but false and a deliberate or inadvertent attempt to twist what was said, to convey a sinister meaning.

It is pertinent to mention that the referenced briefing was broadcast live on Nigeria Television Authority – NTA Channel 419 on DSTV and Channel 46 on GOTV. After the briefing by the Chief of Defence Staff, one of the correspondents asked, “You have spoken on military neutrality in times of elections. Specifically, based on what the Commander-in-Chief directed. Just this week, the President gave a directive to the Armed Forces to remain neutral during the 2023 elections. But my worry is that politicians have a way of piling pressure on security forces and we are witnesses to some of the things that occurred in the past exercises. Now, given this kind of scenario, where politicians or political actors try to pile pressure on your men, how far have you prepared to go to ensure that neutrality, as directed by the President, is protected?”

Read also

We're winning the war against terrorism, says Chief of Air Staff

Tension as suspected thugs set fire on INEC office in southwest state

Some suspected thugs have set fire to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) office at Iyana Mortuary in Abeokuta, the Ogun state capital.

The incident was said to have occurred around midnight on Wednesday, November 9.

It was gathered that the thugs jumped the fence of the commission's building and set fire to it from the back.

132,673 PVCs: INEC speaks on 2023 elections in top southeast state, expresses fear

In another report, INEC expressed concern over the volume of unclaimed Permanent Voters Cards (PVCs) in Anambra state.

Legit's regional reporter in Anambra, Mokwugwo Solomon, reports that the INEC Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) in the state, Dr. Queen Agwu, during a stakeholders meeting at its headquarters in Awka, on Wednesday, December 7, 2022, announced that as much as 132,673 PVCs are yet to be claimed by their owners across the 21 council areas of the state.

She promised that the commission's offices will be open across the 21 LGAs of Anambra State, even on Saturdays and Sundays, to enable eligible voters to claim their voters cards. She encouraged voters, who have not collected their PVCs to pick theirs; while a new batch of PVCs from the recent voter registration exercise is still being expected.

Source: Legit.ng