Robbers armed with guns have stolen new voter registration equipment from Murtala Muhammed international airport in Lagos. An electoral commission spokesman said laptops and cameras were among the items taken from the airport.
The equipment was meant to have been used for registering Nigeria's estimated 70 million voters before elections next year. Commission spokesman Kayode Idowu said the theft would not impact the registration process.
The Nigerian government has pledged to ensure the parliamentary elections next April are fair and free from state interference. In a bid to do so, former voter registration lists were disposed of after complaints that many of the people named were fictitious or dead.
The commission signed contracts in excess of $230 million to buy the new voter registration technology. Details of the theft have not been disclosed, but according to Idowu it has not “derailed the program”.The incident has also brought attention to the insufficient security provisions at the Murtala Muhammed airport.
Source: BBC News
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