Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan of Delta State has commended Deltans for conducting themselves peacefully and orderly during the governorship and House of Assembly elections in the state.
Uduaghan, in Abigborodo, Warri North Local Government Area after casting his vote at Unit One, Umuegbe Primary School polling unit, said information he received from security agencies indicated that voters behaved well, adding that the development was a plus for Deltans as well as the security agenda of the state government.
He commended Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, for improving on its conduct of the presidential election, particularly in ensuring that its staff and election materials arrived polling stations early.
“INEC’s conduct of the governorship and House of Assembly elections in Umuegbe Primary School polling station, Abigborodo Ward Six, was an improvement on its conduct of the presidential election. INEC officials and election materials arrived the polling station at 8. 55 a.m., while accreditation started at 9. 52 a.m,” he said.
Governorship candidate of Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Senator Ifeanyi Okowa, who cast his vote at 1.40p.m., at Eghoma Primary School, Ward 2 Unit 3, Owa Alero, Ika South Local Government Area, expressed satisfaction with the exercise, saying, “No complain so far except for some minor hitches which have been rectified.
“It will definitely be a peaceful exercise and will come out as free and fair,” he added.
Meanwhile, the Labour Party governorship candidate, Chief Great Ogboru, alleged electoral irregularities in five local government areas in the state, lamenting moves by some individuals to sabotage the efforts of INEC in conducting free and fair elections.
Speaking at his Abraka residence, Ogboru alleged: “We have recorded series of irregularities in five councils including parts of Ethiope East, Bomadi and Ika North East.
“PVCs were brought in their hundreds and used to vote without being authenticated by the card readers. We are having mixed feelings about the elections and are documenting these observations.”
On his part, the All Progressives Congress, APC, governorship candidate, Olorogun O’tega Emerhor, commended INEC for the smooth conduct of the polls.
Addressing newsmen after his accreditation in Evwreni, Emerhor commended INEC for the use of card readers, describing same as a worthy process aimed at ensuring credible accreditation for the electoral process.
Also at Erevweni, Samuel Marierie, PDP House of Assembly candidate for Ughelli North Constituency I, accused his opponents of ballot snatching in Orogun wards. He noted that despite the set backs, he was confident of winning the election.
At Orogun, the Labour Party senatorial candidate for Delta central, Obarisi Ovie Omo-Agege in company of his wife, voted about 2:05p.m., in Unit 19. Describing the turnout as impressive, Omo-Agege, said: “Deltans deserve to be governed by the people they choose to govern them and no other candidate fits more than the LP governorship candidate, Ogboru.
“Though we have received reports of abnormalities, especially in Delta Central where there is a wide spread of non-availability of result sheets, we want INEC to do the right thing as we won’t accept anything short of that.”
Accreditation and voting went on smoothly in parts of Ughelli and its environs as scores of electorate came out to cast their votes in peaceful manner while security agents manned strategic positions to forestall breakdown of law and order.
In Owheologbo, Isoko North Local government Area, the Secretary to the State Government, Ovuozorie Macaulay, complained about shortage in voting materials dispatched to the council. Macaulay, who commended the voters for turning out en-mass and conducting themselves peacefully, stated that INEC failed to address the shortcomings observed during the presidential elections.
According to him, “The exercise is very peaceful. The only thing that would have caused trouble was that in the presidential and National Assembly elections they brought only 74, 000 ballot papers out of the accepted 107, 000 for the council.”
Emami step-mother detained
Former PDP chieftain in Warri, Chief Ayirimi Emami, who defected to APC recently, raised alarm that his step-mother, Mrs. Elizabeth Emami, was detained for hours, allegedly by Ijaw youths at Kurutie, who also harassed and beat up other innocent travellers.
But, PDP chairman in Warri South West council, Chief Boro Opudu, who acknowledged that Emami spoke to him about his step mother, dismissed the allegation of tension on the waterways, saying there was calm from information available to him.
“I complained to the Residential Electoral Commissioner, REC and he promised that it would be corrected in the governorship and state assembly election. They brought again 74, 000 depriving us about 38 percent of our voting strength. For me that is unacceptable; that being unfair to the people of this council. That is a way of discouraging us and reducing us and I think they are not being fair to the Isoko people.”
He noted that despite the challenges “there is nothing we can do; we are not going to say we cannot vote because of that because it is trap they are setting so that we get upset and pull out so the party we are will lose.”
Source: Vanguard
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