Osita Duruocha, an official of the INEC, who was declared missing recently, has been found dead.
An official of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Osita Duruocha, was recently declared missing. He has been found dead.
The corpse of the INEC official was found along Isu-Aniocha-Urum Road in Awka North Local Government Area of Anambra State. The area is in Nigeria’s South-east.
The deceased official of the INEC, Duruocha, was a Principal Executive Officer II on Grade Level 10 at the electoral commission.
The national spokesperson of the organisation, Festus Okoye, informed the media of the details in a statement on Friday.
According to him, the commission’s Administrative Secretary in the state, Jude Okwuonu, reported the disappearance of the deceased, Duruocha, on Wednesday.
Okwuonu also informed the commission on Thursday that Duruocha’s body was discovered where unknown persons dumped it, Okoye said.
“Other staff members of the commission, the deceased official, Duruocha’s brother and the police have evacuated the body and taken the corpse to the morgue.
“The police and other security agencies have investigated the matter. This investigation will help determine the circumstances that led to Duruocha’s disappearance and eventual death,” the commission spokesperson added.
INEC officials have increasingly become targets of attacks by armed individuals lately across the South-east region of Nigeria.
The armed individuals assumed to be part of the Biafra agitation are threatening to disrupt the 2023 general election in the South-east. Additionally, there have been renewed attacks on INEC facilities and personnel across the region.
On 14 April, armed individuals, claiming to be Biafran agitators, killed an INEC official, Anthony Okorie, when they attacked a polling unit at Ihitte Uboma Local Government Area of Imo State. The polling station was holding continuous voter registration.
During the attack, the armed individuals wereasking the INEC officials to stop the registartion. They further said there would be no regional election in 2023.
INEC immediately suspended the exercise in the area after the attack.
