The Police in Lokoja, Kogi state capital, have arrested eight persons, two of whom are special advisers to Kogi State governor, Alhaji Ibrahim Idris over illegal intrusion into the offices of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) allegedly to retrieve and tamper with electoral materials that were used in the last re-run governorship election.

  The suspects who included the All Nigeria Peoples Party leaders have all been trading accusation and counter accusation on who actually were the culprits in the criminal case.

  The ANPP through one of its leaders in the state, Alhaji Mohammed Kasimu Mobo while addressing the press, at the ANPP secretariat along Crowther road, said that when his party got wind that top government officials were at the INEC secretariat on the fateful day, right inside the INEC store along with some INEC officials including the store keeper, the police was alerted and on arrival at the INEC office, the special adviser on security matters, Mr. Tom Zekeri and his counterpart on legal matters, Barrister Ndamodu Ali were caught red handed tempering with electoral materials, which he alleged included ballot papers.

  Alhaji, Mobo explained that the election petition tribunal had earlier ordered the resident electoral commissioner in Kogi State, Mr. Ademola Ekundayo to produce all electoral materials including ballot papers used in the last governorship election in the state to the tribunal at its resumed sitting in Lokoja.

He told journalists that while the police were effecting the arrests of the governor’s aids, their drivers scaled over the fence of the INEC secretariat and the law enforcement agents have to move their vehicles to the state police headquarters.

 According to the ANPP spokesman, INEC legal adviser, who as a learned gentleman was supposed to warn against such crime, participated and was also picked.

  Alhaji Mobo stated further that he and two other ANPP officials who tipped the police were later arrested while the governor’s aides and their collaborators were set free.

  In a swift reaction to the allegation the special assistant to governor Ibrahim Idris on publicity and strategies, Mr. Phrank Shaibu, while addressing the press at the Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ) press centre, Lokoja, dismissed the allegation as contrived "guerrilla tactics" aimed at diverting the attention of the government from its avowed good intention to improve the welfare of the people of the state.

 Mr. Shaibu alleged that what transpired at the INEC secretariat was wholly a ground design of the ANPP to subvert the efforts of the electoral tribunal having known too well that they have no ground in the on going electoral disputes.

  When asked on what brought the two governor’s aides to INEC office on Sunday, the special assistant explained that they were there in their capacities as security and legal advisers when they were tipped that some ANPP officials and hoodlums were at INEC trying to cause confusion and smuggle vital documents that would be tendered at the tribunal.