Plateau by-election: 24,000 voters risk disenfranchisement— Irigwe community

Ahead of Saturday’s by-elections in Jos North/ Bassa Federal Constituency of Plateau State, the Irigwe ethnic nationality Sunday said 24,000 voters in 16 communities could be disenfranchised.

President, Irigwe Development Association (IDA), Robert Ashi Dodo, said this in Abuja during a stakeholders’ dialogue organized by the Jos-based Coalition for Minority Rights.

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He said the voters were currently displaced following violent attacks and killings in the communities.

He said the association had petitioned the Independent National Electoral Commission about the situation.

He said: “We have 16 communities that have been displaced and we’ve done the census, we’ve done the statistics and we’ve almost 24,000 or more people that will not be given their right as citizens to vote.

“So, you can imagine that if these people will not be given the chance to vote, whatever is coming out from that election will not be the true figure, will not be the true exercise of electioneering in our community.

“When we were considering the by-election that is coming up in Bassa, Jos North, we quickly went to INEC to explain the situation we have found ourselves because of this crisis since several of our communities were displaced and houses and properties burnt.”