The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has read the riot act to the parties, gave a list of election offences, and the penalties for such ahead of the Edo State governorship election.
According to a bulletin released on Saturday, the electoral body said that any electoral offender will be arrested and prosecuted to the fullest.
Quoting extensively from the Electoral Act, INEC stated that Sections 23 (a and d) of the law frowned on unlawful possession or selling or buying of voters’ cards, saying the penalty for the offences is two years imprisonment or fine of 500,000.
INEC said in Section 59 of the Electoral Act, anyone impersonating voters shall be arrested and prosecuted for an offence of impersonation under the law applicable in the state and the Electoral Act.
Section 124 (1) of the Electoral Act, INEC said, deals with the bribery of its officials or security officers and anyone found wanting shall be jailed for one year or fined 500, 000 or both.
According to INEC, Section 125 of the Electoral Act states that anyone spying to know who a person voted for is to be jailed for six months or made to pay a fine of N100, 000. Section 127 (1) of the Act specifies that voting or trying to vote where a person is not registered is an offence corroborated in Section 127 (2) and a person shall be jailed for six months or pay a fine of 100, 000 if found guilty of the offence.
INEC said section 128 of the Electoral Act dealt with acting or inciting others to act in a disorderly manner, saying it is an offence punishable with a year imprisonment or a fine of 500,000, while Section 129(1) states that campaigning, blaring of siren within 300 meters of a polling unit on an election day is an offence under Section 129(3) with a jail term of six months or a fine of N100,000.
Furthermore, INEC said under Section 129 (1) of the Act, the destruction of electoral materials or snatching of any election material constituted an offence, as stated in section 129(4), with one-year jail term without an option of fine.
INEC also addressed the issue of underage or multiple voting, explaining that anyone found wanting here shall be jailed for 12 months or fined 500,000 or both.
