Developing: Hoodlums set Ogun INEC office on fire

The office of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) at Iyana Mortuary in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital, has been set on fire by some suspected hoodlums.

Sources said the arson was carried out in the late hours of Wednesday to the early hours of Thursday.

It was learnt that the hoodlums scaled the perimeter fence, jumped into the premises and set the INEC building on fire from the back.

A source told The Star that the hoodlums “soaked loaves of bread with petrol and threw same into the building at different angles to light up the INEC office.”

A security guard at the facility, Azeez Hamzat, was said to have made a  distress call to the police at about 1a.m. on the fire incident.

The fire fighters and the police were able to put out the fire.

However, the Registration Area Officer’s office and the conference room were affected by the inferno.

Some non-sensitive materials were also affected by the fire.

“No life was lost and no injury was sustained in the fire,” an official said.

Ogun State Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC), Niyi Ijalaye, described the fire incident as shocking.

Ijalaye said: “It is correct that our office was set on fire. The police are investigating. I do not know what to say. I’m in shock myself. We called the police and other security agencies at night. The fire brigade put the situation under control. The level of damage is still being assessed.

“It is very shocking and untoward. The security agencies are doing their very best. We are meeting again later today to come up with other strategies (toward securing our facilities).”

The Star