…INEC officials arrive on time, BVAS functional
From Romanus Ugwu, in Awka
Brazen vote buying and disturbing apathy currently characterised the ongoing Anambra State House of Assembly election in several part of the state capital, Awka.
The situation is the same in most part of the polling units visited as agents and vote canvassers, outnumbering the voters, usually crowd any new arrival to the polling units to solicit for votes for the parties they represent.
Modus operandi are almost the same as every voter displays the ballot paper to reveal to the agents where they voted, then moves straight to the paypoint to collect their reward, which rangies from N1000 to N2000 or promise of a bag of rice.
In some instances, the canvassers and agents would handover Permanent Voters Card (PVC) they perhaps had collected for the voters to them on arrival that in turn cast their votes in favour of the agent’s preferred party.
In fact, a particular woman had arrived, refused to vote, moved from one agent to the other negotiating for better offer, before settling for a political party who promised her a bag of rice.
While all these incidents, prevalent at Ogbuegbankwu, 027, Awka 111, Awka South 07, Anambra C4 of the state capital, were going on, the few security agents posted to the polling units watch with disinterest.
However, what was also evidenced in most of the polling units is massive voter apathy. While some traders opened their shop or display their article on wheelbarrow along the road at Eke Awka market, many young one chose to engage in sporting activities, especially football.
Some of the few voters that spoke to our correspondent hinged the apathy on the disappointing outcome of the presidential election of February 25.
“INEC actually showed us that our votes don’t count. We were killing ourselves here during the presidential election last month only for INEC to announce someone else as the winner. There is no need wasting our time again in the name of voting when it will not count,” one of them complained in a chat with our correspondent.
Interestingly, in most of the polling units our correspondent visited, officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) arrived the polling units on time, the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) operated optimally, but voters were very scanty.