Massive turnout as Ekiti voters troop to polling units

THERE was a massive turnout of  voters in Ekiti State as the accreditation  and voting process got underway in Saturday’s  governorship election.

Reports form across the three senatorial districts of the state said that many voters arrived their polling units as early as 6.30 a.m. to wait for election officials.

Across many polling units in Ado Ekiti, the state capital,  there was an impressive turnout of enthusiastic voters determined to exercise their civic responsibility.

At Ward 10 Unit 12 a and b, Basiri area of Ado-Ekiti, the Assistant Presiding Officer, Miss Nafisat Jamie said that though they collected all the election materials as early as 6.00 am,  the process could not start due to  transportation challenges.

As of 8.53 am, the  names of eligible voters were just being pasted for viewing  and confirmation.

An observer from the Transition Monitoring Group (TMG), Mrs Tosin Abati, said that the process started late due to late arrival of INEC officials.

At Ward 10 Unit 9, Okesha area of the state capital, the Assistant Presiding Officer  2, Mr Owoseni Taiwo, addressed the voters, who were already on the queue and opened  the ballot box for everyone to see and confirm that it was empty.

Visits  to Wards 3, Units 5 and 13 Idemo, and Ward 9 Unit 12 Odo-Ado revealed that  accreditation and voting were going on simultaneously with security men on standby.

The malfunctioning of the smart card readers delayed prompt accreditation of the voters in Ward 3 Unit 1, Olowoyo compound, Idemo street and Ward 4, Unit 4, Ologun compound, Ejigbo street. The situation was the same at ward 9 Salaudeen nursery and primary school, all in Ado Ekiti, the state capital.

Helen Umuakhe and David Michael, presiding officers at Ward 3 Unit 1, and  Ward 4, Unit 4 were seen appealing to agitated voters to remain calm. They, however, insisted that eligible voters whose finger prints were rejected by the Smart Card reader would not be allowed to vote.  Checks revealed that the INEC has since stopped using Incident Form to accommodate voters at the receiving end of malfunctioning card readers, unlike in previous elections.

Appraising the process while speaking with newsmen, President, Women Arise, Dr Joe Odumakin, who was in Ado Ekiti as an election observer with her team, said INEC fared well in its conduct.

She identified poor performance of the card reader,  pockets of violence as capable of discrediting the electoral process.

“INEC has really tried because the election today is the build up to its voters awareness.

Today,  some of the reports that we have, the conduct of the officers, Ekiti is going to be a litmus test for us,  for 2019. We are still going to have Osun and the international community is watching and what they see,  what they report will go a long way in projecting  the image of this country. Ekiti is one state out of 36, but it is very important,” she said.

On voters inducement, Dr Odumakin said it happened in few polling units visited by her team.

“Yes, on the question of inducement, we have to back whatever we say with facts. Our observers spread across the 16 local government, from their reports,  it happened in few polling units but I think by and large, the card readers  will go a long way in taking care of the discrepancies that we might have through votes buying.  But there is room for improvement despite the imperfections and  we will be able to get to that pedestal that accords respectability to elections.”

Dr Mike Omilusi, an observer from the Allaince for Credible Election, commended INEC for its pro-active strategies  in terms  of  voter education and sensitisation ahead of the  poll.

He also commended INEC on the use of the card readers for the election, but advised that more card readers be made available in future elections.

The observer said that the new idea of accreditation and voting simultaneously was  commendable, noting that this would ensure quick conclusion of the exercise.

At the St Michael’s School, Ajilosun, opposite Mobil filling station, the turnout was also impressive while the accreditation and voting process was  also going on  simultaneously.

Speaking with NAN, an observer from the Justice Development and Peace Initiative, Mr Aluko Isiaih, said that the election started well until when the card reader in one of the wards stopped working  for about 45 minutes before it was rectified.

Meanwhile, as of the time of filing this report, elections were going smoothly in  all the eight units located within the school’s  premises while there was no  report of violence.

Efforts to speak with members of  the monitoring team from the British High Commission, however, failed  as they declined comments.

Mr Wale Adebayo, a member of the  team,  told NAN that they had  no comment to make.

Card reader stops Fayemi’s wife

THE All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate, Dr Kayode Fayemi, has commended the electorate for their impressive turnout and conduct in the Saturday governorship election just as the card reader prevented his wife from voting.

Fayemi made the commendation after casting his ballot in his Unit 009, Ogilolo Ward 11, Isan-Ekiti, Oye Local Government Area, at about 10.28 a.m.

However, his wife, Bisi, who accompanied him to the polling station, could not vote as the card reader could not accredit her.

Although the entire officials found her name on the voter register, the card reader did not recognise her voter card.

Assessing the electoral process, however, Fayemi said, “This is the day the Lord has made and we are glad in it. I have just voted in my unit.

“The voting process is relatively smooth; my card was recognised. I was accredited and I went to cast my ballot.

“You can see the turnout in my community, it is huge. This is not a big community, but almost everyone is out to cast his vote.

“They ensured that they conduct themselves in a proper manner and not beng disenfranchised.”

He said that reports he got from his representatives revealed that though the exercise was peaceful in most places, there were also reports of skirmishes in some places, and Card Reader issues.

“I have had reports across the state from my agents, from our leaders; we have skirmishes, Card Reader issues, but also there has been relative calm in most places.

“It is too early to judge now; it is too early to give a final and full verdict on how the process on the ground out there is.

“I will plead with you, the media, to allow me some time to get more reports from the field before I give you a definitive statement about the process,” he added.

A large number of voters queued up to cast their ballots at the polling units in the ward.

The INEC voting list pasted in Unit 009 bore 345 names of eligible voters, including Fayemi and his wife.

Card reader rejects Olusola’s card

The card reader machine at Ofafuru Polling Unit 002, Ward 002 in Ikere-Ekiti  on Saturday rejected the voter card of  Professor Kolapo Olusola, the PDP candidate in the governorship election.

Olusola had arrived at the polling unit at exactly 9.15 a.m. to be accredited and vote, a process which could not hold for him after about 20  minutes.

Although his wife, Janet voted, the PDP standard-bearer  could not  and had to leave to allow others exercise their civic responsibility.

Reacting to the development, Olusola said he was disappointed with the type of card reader deployed for the exercise  by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

“I got to my polling unit early today (Saturday) to cast my vote and to my surprise, the INEC card reader rejected  my card.

“I was standing in front of the INEC presiding officer for about 20 minutes while they were busy battling with card reader.

“If I do not cast my vote, it does not mean I am not ready to vote but the INEC card reader did not accredit my card which automatically nullifies me from exercising  my civic right.

“Four years ago, it was the same voter  card that I used to cast my vote and the card reader did not reject it.

“I will officially report my experience to the REC  and I believe appropriate actions will be taken,” he said

Parties bicker over cash inducement

DURING Saturday’s governorship poll, there were incidents of altercations over open inducement of voters.

But none of the 35 participating parties owned up to the inducement allegation, as the parties traded blames.

NAN learnt that highest money doled out as inducement in some instances was N5,000, while the lowest was N3,000.

At Iyin-Ekiti, hometown of former Governor Niyi Adebayo who is a newly elected Deputy National Deputy Chairman, (South) of APC, elections went on smoothly in the two wards in the town.

Voting was peaceful also at Ise-Ekiti, hometown of a former Minister of Works Mr Dayo Adeyeye. The eligible voters conducted themselves peacefully.

Adeyeye, who came out to vote at about 9:30am, commended the voters, security agents and INEC.

Adeyeye switched to the All Progressives Congress after the PDP primary, accusing the incumbent Govenror Ayo Fayose of hijacking the exercise.

REC lauds process

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) at the end of voting in Saturday’s governorship election in Ekiti, said the exercise recorded 90 per cent success.

The Resident Electoral Commissioner in the state, Professor Abdulganih Olayinka, disclosed this to newsmen in Ado-Ekiti while assessing the electoral process.

He said that reports from the eight INEC Commissioners in the field indicated that the election was largely peaceful across the state.

Olayinka said he was glad to hear that all INEC personnel, including ad hoc staff, got to their various polling unit in good time and the election started early and uniformly.

“Except for Gbonyin Local Government Area where it was alleged that ballot materials were scattered on the ground and in one or two places where the card reader malfunctioned, all was well,” he said.

The REC added that identified problems in the electoral process had been addressed, adding that no “incident form” was used in the exercise.

Fayose, police trade words  over alleged compromise

GOVERNOR Ayo Fayose of  Ekiti, on Saturday, alleged that the election was largely compromised by police personnel.

The News Agency of Nigeria  (NAN) reports that the governor,  who addressed newsmen shortly after casting his vote at about  1.20 p.m.  at his Polling Unit 001 in Afao-Ekiti, alleged that policemen aided and abetted the distribution of money to induce voters.

He, however, admitted that voters turned out massively and conducted themselves in a peaceful manner.

The governor, nontheless, accused  policemen of  supervising ballot snatching, as well as providing cover for those reported to be engaged in illegal sharing of money on election day.

According to him, all attempts to personally report the alleged cases to the police authorities were rebuffed.

“I want to state expressly that the police have hijacked the whole process;  INEC might mean well but the process was tampered with by the police.

“As I  speak, thugs are having a field day snatching ballot boxes under police watch; this is a national disgrace.

“There were cases of not only  ballot snatching, but ballot cleansing and clearing, even as the police and other officers cooperated by looking the other way,’’ he said.

But, one of the three police commissioners deployed in the area to monitor the election, Mr Ali Janga, dismissed the allegations as untrue.

He commended Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the electorate for the peaceful conduct of the exercise.

Janga said most of the allegations  raised by politicians were promptly investigated and were found to be false.

“I have visited some of the  local governments and there was  no electoral manipulation anywhere as being claimed.

“People just raise false alarm by sending distress calls to us, but many of them were found to be false when we got there.

“Election materials were distributed as early as possible and they were guarded by security men and  the turnout was very impressive,’’ he said.

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