Adamawa REC In Police Custody,  Says I Didn’t Collect Bribe

Detained and suspended resident electoral commissioner (REC) for Adamawa State, Hudu Yunusa-Ari, has said he did not collect bribe from any candidate during the state supplementary governorship election.

Yunusa-Ari stated this when he appeared on British Broadcasting Commission (BBC) monitored in Abuja. He said he had no regrets declaring the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, Aishatu Ahmed (Binani) as the winner against the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate and governor of the state, Ahmadu Fintiri because he acted within the law.

He was detained at the Force Headquarters yesterday by the police authorities which invited him on Monday for interrogation.

He spoke in Hausa language while explaining his part in the controversial April 16, 2023, announcement of the governorship election, which favoured Binani.

On whether he collected bribe amid allegations against him, Ari said that if he had collected bribe from any candidate he or she would be asking for a refund of the money.

Yunusa-Ari stated that collecting bribe is forbidden by law, adding that the allegations against him were false.

He stated that he acted within the ambit of the law to avert impending danger of the delay in announcing the results, especially because he realised that the results brought by the presiding officers from the 69 polling units, which he did not sign, differed from those uploaded on the INEC Result Viewing (IReV) portal.

Yunusa-Ari added that he did not cook or generate the results as claimed too, adding that he compiled all the polling unit results and declared the winner of the election based on the highest number of valid votes scored by the candidate of the APC.

The Nigeria Police Force yesterday confirmed that it had arrested Yunusa-Ari. He was arrested when he honoured the invitation before the Police committee investigating the circumstances that led to the announcement of Binani as the winner of the supplementary election when the process had not been concluded.

Before his detention, there were calls for his arrest and investigation by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) over alleged impropriety during supplementary gubernatorial polls in the state.

Confirming Yunusa-Ari’s arrest yesterday, Force spokesman, CSP Olumuyiwa Adejobi said, “Barrister Ari, who was arrested by the Police Election Planning, Monitoring, and Evaluation Team in Abuja on Tuesday May 2, 2023, is currently in police custody and is being grilled to ascertain the motives and motivations behind his alleged improper actions during the supplementary election in Adamawa State.

“In addition, other officials and individuals culpable in the saga are being interrogated by the team,” he said.

Adejobi said the inspector-general of police has given clear assurance that every individual involved or indicted in the matter will be apprehended and investigated in line with the provisions of the law for possible prosecution.

“The inspector-general of police has also assured Nigerians of the commitment of the Force to ensuring that justice is served in this case and that all guilty parties are brought to justice,” he said.