The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Low turnout

  • Low turnout mars Rivers supplementary polls

    The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) yesterday conducted supplementary election in four local government areas of Rivers State, with the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) reportedly sweeping the four House of Assembly seats in contention.

    According to some officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) who spoke to The Nation, the election took place in all the units of Abua/Odual and Gokana local government areas, but was conducted in some units in Ahoada-West and Opobo/Nkoro local government areas.

    An INEC staff who spoke in Port Harcourt, Davies Iluebbey, yesterday said although there was an early downpour in the state yesterday yet materials for the polls arrived the unites early enough.

    Another INEC staff, Mr. Samuel Udezi, who is the Electoral Officer in Opobo/Nkoro LGA, said the election was going on smoothly at the time he spoke.

    Meanwhile, the Rivers Police Command said there is calm in the four local government areas of the state where Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) is conducting the State Constituency Assembly supplementary election.

    DSP Nnamdi Omoni, the Command’s Public Relations Officer (PPRO), said: “There is calm in the four LGAs; there is no report of any incidence for now.

    The Nation however noted that low turnout of voters marred the exercise in Abua/Odual, Gokana, Opobo/Nkoro and Ahoada West Local Government Areas of Rivers State for four constituencies in the state’s House of Assembly, which could not be concluded on March 9, as a result of violence, militarisation and thuggery.

    It was gathered that the voter apathy was as a result of fear of violence, as experienced across Rivers State during the February 23 Presidential and National Assembly Elections, as well as the March 9 Governorship and House of Assembly polls, which led to the death of many innocent persons, with many people injured and their valuable property also destroyed.

    INEC’s Head, Voter Education and Publicity, Edwin Enabor, described the supplementary elections as peaceful, smooth and that the electoral materials arrived at the various polling units on time and without any hitch, while lauding security agencies for doing the needful.

    Enabor noted that since the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) in Rivers refused to release the youth corps members serving in the state for the exercise, the electoral commission made use of its permanent staff and some students of the University of Port Harcourt (UNIPORT) as ad hoc staff for the polls.

    As at press time yesterday evening, results of the elections were still being collated.

  • Low turnout, ballot snatching mar election in Imo

    The rescheduled election in parts of Imo State was characterised by high rate of voter apathy, late arrival of voting materials, ballot box snatching and other forms of violence.

    The elections scheduled to hold in five local government areas of Ngor-Okpala,  Ikeduru, Oguta, Isu and Orlu, did not commence until 11 O’clock.

    Read also: APC wins Kwali chairmanship supplementary poll

    In some of the polling units monitored by our correspondent in Ikeduru, electoral officers were waiting for the voters and party agents to commence.

    Meanwhile, there were reported cases of ballot box snatching in Eziama Ikeduru and Alulu in Ngor-Okpala Council Area.

     

  • Polls: Katsina records low turnout

    Katsina state experienced voter apathy in the Gubernatorial and State House of Assembly elections.The polls were opened as early as 8am in almost all the polling units across the state.

    Besides, the Independent National Electoral Commission, (INEC) had a better arrangement on ground which allowed for smooth conduct of the polls unlike what obtained in the last presidential and National Assembly elections.

    However, there was low turnout by voters, a situation which made the ad hoc staff to be idle for most part of the day.

    A voter in Turin Wada polling unit 001, Ahidjo Sani-Wali said the north attaches more value to the presidential election compared to any other elections.

    Speaking on the election however, the Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) Mr. Jubrin Zarewa said the near perfect conducts of the polls were as a result of the improvement made to its procedures.

    He noted that electoral materials were deployed early as against the previous elections and also the putting the adhoc staff through refresher training on the handling of the Smart Card Readers.

    Zarewa who also reacted to the report of abduction in Danmusa Local Government Area of the state noted that the commission was yet to ascertain the true position of things, explaining that the latest report from the place shows that ten of the said abducted people have returned.

    He however said the security agencies on a red alert in all identified flashpoint areas in the state.

  • By-elections: APC wins as LASIEC laments low turnout

    The Lagos State Independent National Electoral Commission (LASIEC) yesterday lamented low turnout of voters during the by-elections in two wards in Oshodi-Isolo and Agege Local Government Areas.

    All Progressives Congress (APC) candidates in the councils won the elections.

    Of the 18,339 registered voters in Agege and 17,279 in Oshodi, only handful of the electorate came out.

    Around 12:30 pm when LASIEC Commissioners went round to monitor the election, some polling units recorded between seven and nine votes.

    Chief Toyin Ibrahim-Famakinwa, who led other LASIEC Commissioners and officials to Oshodi-Isolo, described the action as terrible.

    “I’m not too happy about the turnout. People have no reason for not coming out to vote despite enough publicity by LASIEC.

    “It is so terrible that they are not coming.  People don’t take council elections serious, the weather is good; there is movement, what else?

    “Some people still have this I don’t care attitude to elections,” she lamented.

    Ibrahim-Famakinwa described the process as calm “because nobody wants to go to prison. We have want troublemakers to keep off as you can see the presence of security officials on the ground.”

    APC Khadijat Jimoh in Ward ‘B’ scored 2,208 votes to defeat her opponent from the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) who got 343 votes.

    Rasheedat Adekunle of APC defeated PDP and Accord Party opponents, Abdul- Rasheed Lawal and Lookman Afogunlowo by 980 votes to PDP – 480 and Accord 288.

  • Low turnout at Eti-Osa bye-election in Lagos

    Low turnout at Eti-Osa bye-election in Lagos

    Voters in Eti-Osa Constituency I of Lagos State came out in few numbers yesterday  for the election of their new representative in the House of Assembly.

    The bye-election, organised by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), followed the death of Mr Kazeem Alimi who represented the constituency. Alimi died on July 18.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) said a  few people were seen casting their votes in some polling units, hours after the polls opened at 8.00a.m.

    As at noon, the INEC ad-hoc staff said that less than 100 out of the 1,391 registered voters had cast their ballots at Polling Unit 004, Ward-5 at Ilado /Eti-Osa.

    At Polling Unit 002, Ward-5 in Ilado/Eti-Osa, 21 voters out of 1,516 registered voters cast their votes as at noon.

    Also, at PU 016 in Ward-4, Lekki/Ikate, which has 1966 registered voters, less than 50 voters cast their vote as at 1.39p.m. In some polling units in Ward-2 and Ward-3 on Victoria Island, the situation was the same.INEC ad-hoc workers had little to do.

    Reacting, Prof. Abdul-Ganiyu Olayinka, the Resident Electoral Commissioner for Ekiti, who monitored the bye-election, decried the poor turnout. He, however,said  that the  low turnout was not unexpected in a bye-election

    Olayinka said: “So far, the election has been going on smoothly. We don’t have problem except in one or two places where rain disturbed.

    “We started on time. We have not had any disappointment with all card readers. We are very happy with the performance of the card readers.

    “What I notice is that there is low turnout, maybe because this is an elitist area or because there is no movement restriction.

    “People should take election serious and come out to elect the person they want as leaders, so that we won’t be blaming ourselves.’’

    Alhaji Taofik Kokoroowo, the Peoples Democratic Party agent at Polling Unit 4 in Ward 5, Ilado Eti-Osa, regretted lamented poor turnout.

    “Election is going well but people didn’t come. People don’t recognise re-run election; they have gone to work,” he told NAN.

    Kokoroowo commended INEC and security agencies for a smooth election.

    Mr Lekan Badmus, the All Progressives Congress (APC) agent in the same unit, also hailed INEC and security operates. He equally decried the poor turnout.

     

  • Low turnout mars Ifako /Ijaiye election

    The bye-election into the Ifako/ Ijaiye Federal Constituency was held yesterday as low turn-out of voters was widely witnessed at the polling booths.
    Some of the ad hoc staff like National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members arrived the venue of their primary assignment yesterday. The election resulted from the death of Mr Elijah Adewale, who represented the constituency in the House of Representatives. He died in Abuja on July 20.
    The security situation was normal with skeletal movement. The turnout of voters was not impressive, for instance at The African Church, unit B polling station, Ojokoro in the Ifako/Ijaiye Federal Constituency out of 400 registered voters as at 11am only 10 registered voters have voted.
    The situation was like that generally, as most staff of INEC are almost observing holiday.
    However, INEC blamed the low turnout of voters for the Ifako/Ijaiye Federal Constituency bye-election on poor awareness.
    Alhaji Abdullahi Kaugama, Supervisory Resident Electoral Commissioner for the Ifako/Ijaiye Federal Constituency told journalists in an interview that although the commission did its best to create awareness on the exercise, awareness of bye-election generally in the country was low.
    “Actually, awareness of bye-election in Nigeria is low because people don’t know much about it. It may also be because political parties did not carry out enough campaigns, but generally, the conduct has been peaceful,” he said.

    The commissioner said that poll officers and materials got to polling units in time.
    Also speaking to journalists during a routine inspection to the polling units, Mr Fatai Owoseni, Commissioner of Police, Lagos State Command, said that the low turnout was because political parties and their candidates did not carry out adequate campaigns.
    “INEC will not go and bring voters out to vote. The parties did not campaign enough for this bye-election. Out of six political parties, only about two printed posters. Adequate campaigning was not done. So the people did not really know who they are voting for,” he said.
    Owoseni confirmed that the electoral process had been without any violence. “It is almost 2p.m. It has been peaceful, and I am advising the contestants to imbibe the spirit of sportsmanship – election is just like a football game. There must be a winner.”
    The Administrative Secretary of the commission in Lagos State, Mr Clement Oha, said: “We have been going round; we have visited 90 per cent of the polling units so far. I will say I am very impressed except that the turnout is very low. The process is peaceful. Our card readers are working 100 per cent; we have not got any complaint whatsoever.”
    On the low turnout, Oha said that INEC did its best to sensitise the people in the constituency, “We went round the nooks and crannies of the constituency for two days to create awareness; so, we cannot explain why people did not turn up. But generally, I am impressed with the whole process and the conduct of voters and parties.”
    According to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), voting had been concluded in most polling units and voting points at Iju, Fagba, Ogba as at the time of this reports, while counting had started.

  • Low turnout in Osun bye election

    Low turnout in Osun bye election

    A massive low turnout of voters was recorded during Saturday’s bye election for the Ife Central constituency seat in the Osun State House of Assembly .

    Though electoral materials and officers arrived most of the polling units as early as 8.00 am, our correspondent observed that only very few people came out to perform their civic responsibilities.

    Voting, however, held peacefully at Ajebamidele Falaju Bus Stop, Unit 12, INEC, Open Space, Mayfair Junction, Iremo 11, Unit 01A and B, New Garage, Iremo/Ajebaamidele Unit 001.

    It was further observed that accreditation of voters and voting held simultaneously unlike in previous elections where voting took place some hours after accreditation.

    Three political parties, the All Progressives Congress (APC), Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Accord Party (AP) expressed concern over the poor turnout of voters.

    Candidates of the parties, Prince Tilewa Sijuwade, Chief Dipo Eluwole and Mr. Olusegun Ayodele Fanibe respectively, expressed satisfaction with the conduct of electoral officers and security agents.

    The election was held to fill the vacant seat following the death of Hon. Oladejo Makinde, a PDP member.

  • Low turnout mars Jonathan’s rally in Kaduna

    Low turnout mars Jonathan’s rally in Kaduna

    It was a poor outing for the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its Presidential Candidate, President Goodluck Jonathan in Kaduna yesterday, ýas the Presidential campaign rally was poorly attended.

    Contrary to the initial ýclaim by the planning committee of the rally to mobilise two million men for the rally in Kaduna State, the twenty four thousand capacity Ahmadu Bello Stadium, venue of the rally was scanty.

    Even though, the stadium was almost full at the arrival of the President and other party leaders, close to half of the crowd left before President Jonathan mounted the podium to deliver his address.

    Though, none of them expressed their displeasure with the low turnout, disappointment was visibly written on the faces of both Vice President Mohammed Namadi Sambo and Governor Mukhtar Ramalan Yero.

    A party stalwart was also overheard at the venue saying, “this is the worst crowd we have ever seen since the beginning of this campaign. This is unimpressive at all, despite the fact that, this is the state of the Vice President.”

    Meanwhile, a section of the crowd was intermittently chanting, ‘Sai Buhari’, meaning; “It is Buhari”, while security personnel waded in to stop them. However, President Jonathan in his speech said, his administration would revive textile industries in the state if re-elected.

    According to him, the state has already benefited tremendously in terms of education, transportation and many more from central government, saying the attention would not be shifted to revamp the textile industries.

    “We cannot change people without education. Education is the key. That is why we brought Ahmadu Ali 9former chairman of the party) because of his vast knowledge in education.

    “But the greater thing we need to do within the next one year is to revive Kaduna textile industries. We understand that it will generate employment opportunities for our people.

    “With power in place now, reviving these companies and ensuring continuity will now easy. We must do everything to revive it,” he stated.

    In his remark, Senate President, David Mark,ý who described Kaduna as political melting pot of Northern Nigeria, canvassed the people of the state to vote Jonathan in February poll so he could continue with his transformation agenda which the state was a major beneficiary.

    He said, “Mr. President has the love of the country at heart than any other presidential candidate today. Here is a man who has done a lot for the country. The least you can do is vote for him to continue his transformation agenda, added the senate president.”

    Earlier in his welcome address, Governor of Kaduna State, Alhaji Mukhtar Ramalan Yero, commended the President for his transformation programmes, saying the state has benefited immensely from them.