The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project has urged the United States President,Joe Biden, to sanction perpetrators of electoral violence with visa ban.
It also urged Biden to exercise his powers “pursuant to the Presidential Proclamations 7750 and 8697 and the Immigration and Nationality Act to ban Nigerian officials, politicians and other perpetrators and sponsors of violence during the just concluded elections.”
SERAP made the appeal through a statement signed by its Deputy Director, Kolawole Oluwadare, on Sunday, following reported cases of election-related violence in various parts of the country during the Saturday polls.
The non-governmental group urged Biden to “use the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act to block or revoke the visas of anyone suspected to be responsible for cases of intimidation, harassment and violence during the elections, and to impose asset freezes and property sanctions on them and their families.”
It said, “The imposition of targeted sanctions against suspected perpetrators and sponsors of election-related violence in Nigeria would promote accountability, end impunity, and deter human rights violations.”
Meanwhile, electorate in some wards of Warri South Local Government Area of Delta State, on Sunday evening, lamented bitterly as they waited for officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission for rescheduled voting earmarked for the polling units in their wards.
INEC officials did not show up until 5pm on Sunday to commence the rescheduled voting.
INEC officials arrived at Polling Unit 19 Oghonu Square, Ope Street, Agbassa under Bowen Ward, Warri South LGA at 5pm and began to mount their cubicles to commence accreditation of voters.
As of the time of filing the report, voting had commenced with a few electorate seated under a canopy.
None of the INEC officials spoke to journalists on the reason for the late arrival.
A multitude of disenfranchised electorate had on Saturday taken to the streets to protest their inability to vote in the presidential and National Assembly elections.
Voting in the affected polling units was rescheduled by INEC till Sunday following the late arrival or non-distribution of materials to such polling units on Saturday.
INEC’s acting Head of Voter Education and Publicity in Delta State, Bukola Ojeme, told journalists on Sunday that the make-up election were scheduled to hold in three wards in Warri South LGA.
The wards/polling units where the rescheduled elections were billed to hold in Warri South LGA, according to INEC included (RA01) 008, 009, 012, 015; (RA 04) 30( all PUs); (RA05) 005, 009, 010, 011, 015, 028, 029; (RA06) 016; (RA07) 25 (all PUs); (RA09) PU 46 ( All PUs); (RA011) 005, 006, 007, 011, 012, 013 027.
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