The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) says it will probe the TraderMoni micro-credit scheme of the Federal Government.

INEC Chairman, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, disclosed this to reporters on Thursday in Abuja, the nation’s capital.

While the preparations for the coming elections were taking shape, the INEC chairman raised several concerns about vote buying by some politicians.

He said the electoral body was aware of the controversy trailing the TraderMoni, stressing that they would investigate the scheme for possible violation of campaign finance laws.

Professor Yakubu explained that the commission would study public comments on the scheme and assess whether or not the government violated the campaign finance laws.

According to him, INEC has a mechanism for tracking campaign finance violations by the candidates and various political parties in the country.

This comes amid accusations by individuals and groups, including civil society organisations who described the scheme as a form of vote-buying.

Earlier, the INEC chairman addressed senior officials of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) at a strategy meeting which focussed on the general elections.

In his presentation, he highlighted 10 areas of collaboration between the electoral body and the FRSC to ensure the success of the polls.

FRSC Corps Marshall and Chief Executive, Mr Boboye Oyeyemi, on his part revealed that the Corps was already designing strategies and guidelines for officials during the elections.

He informed the INEC boss that a total of 20,000 officials would be deployed for the polls across the country.

Oyeyemi said the FRSC has slated February 5 as commencement date to certify the vehicles that would be used in conveying sensitive election materials.

•Sourced from a Channels TV report

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