A Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) is in trouble for allegedly collecting sums as bribes from an out-going governor.

The said REC, it was learnt, was taking orders from the governor contrary to his oath of office.

The governor attempted to smuggle in the ballot papers he printed for the March 18 governorship and House of Assembly elections, The Nation learnt.

But unknown to him, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had embossed special security features on its papers.

The headache of the REC was how to refund the huge bribe cash he has collected from the governor.

The NATION reports that INEC may report two RECs to President Muhammadu Buhari for sanctions because of alleged misconduct and insubordination.

Some RECs were alleged to have engaged in activities capable of sabotaging the general election.

The same report gave insights into plans by the electoral umpire to carryout disciplinary action on erring officers.

According to investigations, the affected REC allegedly relocated to the Government House in a state controlled by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), for instructions on how to conduct elections.

The REC, who is one of the 19 inaugurated about three months before the general election, fell for the mouth-watering offer of the governor.

Although the REC and the governor smartly “manoeuvred the system” during the Presidential election, they failed during the governorship poll.

It was gathered that the plot to swap INEC ballot papers with fake ones did not succeed at the last minutes because of the vigilance of some officers of the electoral commission and other stakeholders.

A top source, told The Nation that: “The affected REC became a regular face in Government House and he was receiving directives from the governor on vital logistics for the elections.

“The REC virtually became a member of the cabinet of the governor to the bewilderment of other INEC staff in the state.

“We later got to know that the governor parted with irresistible sum in order to hijack INEC operations in the state and produce his successor.

“One of the plans of the governor was to produce ballot papers  which will be used to replace those thumb-printed by legitimate voters who might have been captured by Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS). The said ballot papers were stored in Government House.

“Also, the governor was not aware that INEC ballot papers had special security features.

 “Unfortunately, some of the fake ballot papers were intercepted on the eve of the governorship election by some security agencies. Integrity test indicated that they had no security features like INEC papers.

“The Administrative Officer of INEC in the state was mandated to oversee the technical parts of the governorship and House of Assembly elections.”

Responding to a question, the source added: “The game plan failed and the governor didn’t succeed to produce his successor. The REC is under investigation for his misconduct.”