Bauchi police intercept truck laden with ballot boxes

THE police in Bauchi State on Saturday intercepted an IVECO truck loaded with over 1,550 empty ballot boxes belonging to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) at a check point in Darazo Local Government Area of the state.

Following the interception of the truck, rumour doing the rounds in the state, particularly in Bauchi, the capital, was that the IVECO truck was carrying ballot boxes stuffed with ballot papers already thumb printed in favour of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate in the February 14, 2015 presidential election, President Goodluck Jonathan.

The unsubstantiated rumour was started on social media before it spread like wild fire in the state capital.

Sunday Tribune gathered that the truck, with registration number XE 784 ABJ, which was coming from Lagos, was intercepted at about 8:30 am following intelligence report received by the police.

Following the tension the rumour generated in the state, the truck was brought to the GRA police station in Bauchi, where its content was offloaded in the presence of political parties’ representatives and journalists.

The content, however, turned out to be only empty transparent ballot boxes without any ballot papers inside any of them.

Speaking with journalists, a chieftain of opposition All Progressives Congress ( APC) and a member of Buhari Campaign Organization, Alhaji Aliyu Saidu, stated that his party was satisfied with the outcome of the thorough search conducted on the truck.

“After off loading the items, we are convinced that the boxes are empty. But initially, we heard that the boxes were loaded with thumb printed ballot boxes,” Saidu said.

He, however, stated that there was the need for the country’s electoral umpire to always involve political parties and the media in its activities geared towards conducting the 2015 elections.