A staff member of the Independent National Electoral Commission, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the development was the outcome of a probe by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission following the delayed payment of the ad hoc workers.
The probe, it was disclosed, led to the arrest of an INEC official in the state and the confiscation of N84.69m by the anti-graft body.
Following the confiscation, the source said electoral officers were being compelled to sell off their personal properties to pay the ad hoc staff without recourse to the seized funds.
A similar arrest, it was gathered, was also carried out in Kebbi State, adding that a probe that could have been handled by the internal administrative process of INEC was also generating controversy in the state offices of the commission.
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The source said, “Reports of troubling encounters between INEC state officials and operatives of the EFCC over alleged complaints of unpaid honorariums to ad hoc staff used during the last general elections have raised concerns about the eroding autonomy of the electoral commission under its current leadership and this should be a matter of concern to Nigeria.
“In Zamfara State, it was reported that some EFCC officials arrested an INEC staff over allegations of non-payment of allowances for fieldwork. Also in Kebbi State, similar allegations led to another EFCC arrest. Although such matters should go through the internal administrative procedures in INEC given that the election management body is only answerable to the senate under the 1999 constitution.
Unconfirmed sources revealed that, despite the huge sum of money recovered from the affected staff, they were compelled by the EFCC to look for the money and pay the ad hoc staff to avoid further questioning.
Frantic efforts were made to talk to the affected INEC staff but none of them was ready to speak on the matter.
The Public Relations Officer of the State INEC, Alhaji Garba Galadima, who was contacted for comments, said he neither heard nor had any knowledge on the issue.
“I am hearing this from you for the first time. I don’t know anything about this issue. You can contact those involved to tell you,” said Galadima.
