INEC officials flee, thugs on rampage, as low voters’ turnout mar March 18 elections

Political thugs fulfilled their threat to disrupt peaceful voting, just as surprisingly low turnout by the electorate further dampened enthusiasm as the much-anticipated governorship and state Houses of Assembly elections across the country, Saturday, March 18.

This Saturday’s elections was originally slated for last week, March 11 but had to be shifted following INEC’s inability to complete the reconfiguration of its Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) machines in time for the next election.

Reports monitored across the country showed a low voters’ turnout, even as sponsored political thugs laid siege to polling units suspected of being stronghold of the opposition parties in the election in most parts of the country.

Further open threats to lives were directed at voters who were deemed to be voting for the parties not preferred by the sponsors of the thugs.

Lagos was already in heightened tension following action by some traditional rulers in the state who mischievously imposed festivals in their communities with hours to the governorship and State Assembly polls, as residents are forced to observe night time festivals now in broad day light across parts of the state.

While the Police Command in the state has traditionally assured of safety of voters, non-state actors have continued to brazenly threaten voters on the consequences of their choice of candidate in the election, as they vow to deal violently with those not for their preferred candidates in a particular ruling party in the state.

Matters came to head, Friday, when the chairman of the Lagos State Parks Management Committee, Alhaji Musiliu Akinsanya, popularly known as MC Oluomo,  openly in a viral video threatened the lives of the electorate who refuse to vote for the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state, warning them to ‘stay at home during tomorrow’s (Saturday) governorship election.

“We have begged them. If they don’t want to vote for us, it is not a fight. Tell them, Mama Chukwudi, if you don’t want to vote for us, sit down at home,” Akinsanya said in the video.

He went further to tell the party’s supporters that they know what to do if they discover they (APC) are losing in any area.

Although he had denied his intentions, claiming he was quoted out of context, the threat to Lagosians still remain entering the Saturday polls, with reports of thugs going on rampage across the state attacking polling units suspected to be anti-ruling party.

The witnessed a mix of disrupted and peaceful voting exercise as monitored by Oracle Today Newspaper, where the INEC officials were either caught sleeping due to no-show by voters, or that of disrupted voting process by thugs who storm polling units least favoured to return their preferred candidates in the election.

Precisely in Ikeja local government area, some polling units like the PU11, Ward 2 recorded zero voters, as at mid-morning, while other polling units 4, 5, 6 and 7 in same Ward had emptied out by early as 11.30am as INEC officials were processing accreditation and voting at the same time and seamlessly.

Also, in Egbe-Idimu, although the process started almost 2 hours behind the scheduled time of 8am it nonetheless recorded a massive turnout of voters. At a Polling unit in Abanishe Junction, Agodo, agents of political parties were seen moving from house to house scouting and encouraging voters, particularly the youth, to partake in the exercise.

Presiding Officer, Polling Unit 150, Ward H, Ifako-Ijaiye, Olatunji Esther, disclosed that at 9:22 a.m, only 20 voters had been accredited out of 115 registered voters.

In Polling unit 070, in Ward H, Olaniyi Street, Ifako-Ijaiye, voters trickle in for accreditation. Presiding Officer, Ademisan Ayokunle disclosed as of 8:40, only one voter out of 55 registered voters was accredited for voting.

In PU 010, Ward H, Puposhola street, Ifako, accreditation commenced at 8:25 am while voting was yet to commence as of 9:01 am.

However, for parts of Oshodi-Isolo, Alimosho, Eti-Osa, Ajeromi-Ifelodun, Surulere, Kosofe and Amuwo-Odofin local government areas, thugs laid siege to polling units suspected to be dominated by voters against the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) party in Lagos going by the results of the February 25 Presidential and National Assembly elections.

The thugs reportedly disrupted voting, chased voters away, destroyed ballot papers and other electoral materials of INEC even before the exercise had commenced in some of these areas.

More worrisome was the fact the mayhem were happening in the full glare of the police operatives, despite assurances by the State Command’s Commissioner, Idowu Owohunwa, and that of incumbent Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu of the ruling APC in the state.

In a statement signed by the Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Gbenga Omotoso, the governor urged those threatening to foment trouble ahead of the elections to respect the rights of citizens.

“Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu has assured Lagosians of peaceful elections tomorrow. There is no need for fear.

“Residents are advised to go about their civic duties as the state government has called on all security personnel to guarantee the peace and safety of lives and property before, during and after elections.

“Whilst the state government reiterates the freedom of religion, it also cautions traditional institutions holding these customary rites to ensure the activities do not infringe on the fundamental rights of citizens, who are not of this faith, especially during the elections.

“Anybody planning to foment trouble will have the law to contend with. Our state is peaceful and it will remain so.”

Going by reports of the conduct of the polls, it then appears that assurance went on deaf ears as rampaging thugs and traditional rulers went about their business making their threats to disrupt the electoral process and unleash violent attacks on the selected anti-party voters.

Numerous polling stations inside communities dominated by non-Yoruba speaking people in areas that include – Ajegunle, Sangotedo, Fadeyi and other like communities came under attack, Saturday, as these thugs armed with locally made pistols and shotguns, knives, bottles and other locally-made weapons stormed some of the polling units which were already set up by staff of INEC and proceeded to destroy the election materials and scattering the persons gathered to cast their votes.

In some areas, the thugs patrolled the streets of non-Yoruba speaking neighbourhoods threatening the residents to stay home if they have no intentions of voting for the APC, which is the ruling party in Lagos State.

The APC thugs who spoke in Yoruba language told the residents that Lagos State belonged to Yoruba people and so must be governed by Yoruba people.

In their thinking, the candidate of the APC represents the Yoruba interest while the other candidate of the Labor party is believed to be the candidate of the general masses in Lagos.

In Oshodi-Isolo area of Lagos, which the APC lost during the February 25 election, the hoodlums, wielding iron rods and sticks, invaded the polling units located across Ajao Estate ward where voters were already awaiting the arrival of electoral officials who as at 8:53 a.m were yet to arrive at the Polling Units.

In the Lekki area, Nollywood actress Chioma Akpotha, had cause to cry out in fear after being attacked at her polling unit in Lagos. Akpotha, who broadcast an Instagram live recording, said she was manhandled by the thugs.

The actress, who ran to some soldiers, said she was done with accreditation and was about voting when strange looking men invaded the polling unit around Victoria Garden City in Lagos.

“They destroyed my side mirror, hit my car. I don’t even know the extent of damage to the car, but I just ran out for my life because they wanted to stab me and all that. Thank God I came with some people to help me.”

She pleaded with soldiers who followed her to the polling unit where many persons were seen outside as the voting area was deserted.

“If you no fit vote APC, no come outside oo. This one no be like last time oo,” one of them was heard saying in pidgin, one of the thugs was overheard making the threat.

For another popular Nollywood star, Kate Henshaw, it was a similar tale as she shared a brief incident that occurred at her polling unit in Lagos as she came out to exercise her rights by casting her votes.

Henshaw took to her verified Twitter handle (@HenshwaKate) to call out the chairman of Eti-Osa local government area in Lagos state.

According to Ms Henshaw, the local government area chairman came to her polling unit, and began to issue instructions to the people in Yoruba, unaware of the fact that she (Henshaw) understood what he was saying, before one of them threatened to slap her.

“You came here this morning to rile the people from your local government against me. I don’t know what I did to you. You came here and we’re issuing instructions, you thought I didn’t hear Yoruba, and one of them said he will slap me. After some time, one of them in afro came later and started pointing at me. You should be ashamed of yourself, I am calling you out,” she wrote.

At the Omole Senior Grammar School, Ikeja, Lagos, ballot boxes were destroyed when violence broke out as a thug threatened to break the phone of the journalist with HumAngle for capturing the ugly incident. 

In other parts of the country, the report is similar to that of Lagos as it also confirms thugs sponsored by political interest groups went on rampage disrupting the electoral process, despite the assurance given by both the Nigeria Police and INEC on their readiness for the polls.

In Bayelsa State, thugs hijacked and burnt election materials for three Wards of Ogbia Constituency 2 in during the ongoing state assembly poll in the state.

Reports also claim that INEC officials deployed to the constituency have fled the areas and are already moving back to Yenagoa for safety, as the hoodlums are on the rampage.

INEC’s Head Voter Education and Publicity in Bayelsa State, Mr Wilfred Ifogah, who confirmed the development, said the commission will issue a statement to that effect later.

“We received a report that materials meant for the State Assembly election in about two or three wards in Ogbia Constituency 2 were hijacked and burnt, maybe later we will get a statement on it.”

At the time of filing this report, it appears there will be no election in Ogbia Constituency 2, as INEC officials are already heading back to Yenagoa, the state capital.

However in Enugu State, luck ran out on the political thugs sent to disrupt an electoral process in the Isi-Uzo council, Saturday, as they were beaten up by youths of the community.

The incident occurred at the PU 001, Central School, Isi-Uzo LGA, Enugu, as reports also claim that the political party sponsoring the thugs immediately dispatched the local government area chairman and the police to rescue the trapped thugs.

Arriving at the scene, police fired several shots in the air to disperse the angry youths who were bent on lynching the thugs.

In Ago Palace axis of Oshodi-Isolo council in Lagos, police operatives reportedly shot dead a suspected thug who was attempting to disrupt election process in the area.

In a video shared by one of the eyewitnesses, it was made known that members of the ward personally took their ground to ensure his body wasn’t taken away by the police.

Similarly, no fewer than three suspected political thugs were killed in Gboko Local Government Area of Benue State.

It was gathered that the thugs invaded the polling units 026 and 004, Gboko South while electoral processes were ongoing and attempted to snatch ballot boxes and the Bimodal Voters Accreditation System (BVAS).

An eye-witness, Moses Agure-Dam who confirmed said the thugs were gunned down by military officers.

“The thugs invaded the polling units and disrupted the election. They were three in number, one snatched the BVAS while others snatched ballot boxes but they did not succeed.

“They were all shot dead instantly by the soldiers in the area,” said Agure-Dam.

In Delta State, three person were reported dead amidst election violence in Mosogar Ethiope West Local Government Area.

Also, the house of a former local government council chairman Dr. Wilson Omene was set ablaze in the unrest that has started amidst the ongoing Governorship and House of Assembly elections in the state.

The attacks allegedly occurred during a gun fight between security operatives and thugs.

Also in Delta, suspected thugs attacked and wounded some INEC officials and NYSC members serving as adhoc staff as they also snatched three BVAS machines and other sensitive election materials in Evwreni community, Ughelli North Local Government Area of the state.

The incident is causing serious tension in the area which is home to the founding member of the APC, Olorogun Otega Emerhor.

They police were alleged to be present and watched as the suspected thugs carried out the unwholesome acts.

It would be recalled that the overseeing Commissioner of Police in Delta state, CP Umar Sanda, earlier had dismissed fears and the alarm raised by some citizens over voters’ disenfranchisement in some parts of the state, saying it was a misunderstanding that has already been resolved.

CP Sanda, who spoke to newsmen, said that although there were unruly behaviours in some units, the police were on top of it.

“Election has to do with human behaviour but as you can see here. This place is very peaceful. Though we can’t rule out some places being unruly, so far, so good we have recorded a good number of smooth movements of the whole election process.

‘We don’t have much really to fear. Yes, there are some places where you find one or two problems, but we have been on top of the situation, and I assure the public that we will get out of it safely.

“There is no security agency or agents that are preventing people from coming out to vote, what we advise is this, we are here, we are given the much confidence needed to every member of the public to come out and exercise his franchise.

“My appeal to members of the public especially people of Delta State is to come out and vote let them come and exercise their rights, let them choose the leaders or the governors and the representative or the state assembly without fear or favor. Let them choose the persons of their choice,” the CP said.