LGA chairman, police rescue thug from lynch mob in Enugu, as voters fight back

It was not all plain sailing for political thugs who unleashed mayhem on voters across the country during last Saturday’s governorship and state Assembly elections, as the electorate also fought back the miscreants, as reports indicate.

All through Delta, Lagos, Rivers, Enugu, Ebonyi, Ogun, Kano, Kaduna states, and others, sponsored thugs from some ruling political parties held sway disrupting peaceful voting in many polling units during Saturday’s exercise.

While some voters bore scars on their bodies to show for efforts at discharging their civic responsibilities, others lost their dear lives at the hands of these miscreants which further cast more doubts as to the credibility of the March 18 elections, and even more questions for the, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the security operatives deployed to man the various polling units across the country.

The daring thugs sponsored by political interest groups were on rampage disrupting the electoral process, despite the assurance given by both the Nigeria Police and INEC on their readiness for the polls.

The embarrassing disruption caused by thugs was unprecedented and a departure from the Presidential elections where they took over electoral duties from INEC officials, in adjusting and doctoring results of ballot already cast and collated right at the polling units or secure locations.

In Delta State, three persons 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 ad-hoc 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 All Progressives Congress, APC, Olorogun Otega Emerhor.

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

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.

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

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 on the incident, 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.

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. 

However, it did not go all the way of the thugs as voters in reports monitored by Oracle Today Newspaper, fought back; in some cases it was near death experience for the miscreants, while it ended fatally for them at the hands of the electorate or security operatives at the scene of the attacks.

In Enugu State, luck ran out on some 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 Amuwo-Odofin, residents brought out their dogs in readiness for the thugs who had already assembled to commence disruption of voting exercise at one of the poling units in the council area forcing the thugs to beat a retreat.

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.