The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has said that the 30 staff earlier declared missing in some poling units in the Kogi State governorship election have been found alive.

Rotimi Lawrence Oyekanmi, the Chief Press Secretary to INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, said this on Sunday in Abuja.

According to him, none of the 30 missing staff were injured and that they were back in their respective homes.

“We can now confirm that all the 30 ad-hoc staff engaged for the 2019 Kogi Governorship election and posted to Polling Units 002, 006 and 013 at Olamaboro III; and Polling Units 006, 012, 015, 016, 022 at Imani 1 all in Olamaboro Local Government Area have been accounted for.”

“They are safe, sound and back in their respective homes. The Chairman of the Commission has personally spoken with some of them and they confirmed that they are hale and hearty.”

“These election-day duty staff could not be accounted for initially following the violent attacks by some armed thugs at their respective duty posts after the close of polls,” Oyekanmi said.

He said the commission has established that none of them was either injured or killed and that they were able to successfully conclude the result collation process before the commotion started.

He said the collated election results at Local Government Level are now being announced at the State Collation Centre at the Commission’s State Office in Lokoja. (Daily Trust)