Elections in Anambra State held with some minor hitches as voters commended the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC,for rising up to the occasion.
Gov. Chukwuma Soludo expressed dismay over reports of assault on the state Commissioner for Environment, Dr Felix Odimegwu by an opposition party during the by-election in the state.
Soludo made the allegation while speaking with newsmen shortly after casting his vote in the Anambra South Senatorial By-election, at his polling unit 002, Ofiyi Square, Isuofia ward in Aguata Local Government Area.
The governor said the information was one of the updates he got from the field adding that the incident happened at Ezinifite in Nnewi South LGA.
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“Just in the last few minutes, I got a terrible report from Nnewi South. The news is not palatable but predictable because when you see you are losing, you begin to unleash violence to disrupt the electoral process.
“My Commissioner was in pains and crying that the APC governorship candidate in Anambra took truckload of Police and thugs and was going from one polling unit to another beating up people, including the commissioner.
“That is shocking but not unexpected. That is what you do when you are desperate. I understand they are losing even in his ward.
“Let the people vote and let their vote count. That is what we are asking. But we are confident that at the end of the day, the people’s will must prevail,” he said.
The governor commended INEC for the seamless conduct of the by-election in the state.
“I’m glad that so far, the process has been seamless. From reports I have gotten from around the state – Anambra South and Onitsha, it has been relatively peaceful.
“I’m impressed that people came out to exercise their civic duties of voting for candidates of their choice. This is democracy in action,” Soludo said.
Mrs Ifeoma Azikiwe, the All Progressive Grand Alliance, APGA, candidate for Anambra House of Assembly, Onitsha North Constituency 1, commended the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, for a smooth conduct of the by-election.
Azikiwe, at her Ward 4, polling unit 003 on Saturday in Onitsha, said the process has been fair, except for some isolated calls she got from her agents about issues in certain locations which she is yet to confirm as at the time of this report.
The APGA candidate also alleged that some electorate were disenfranchised because their voters cards were not accepted by INEC officials as a result of recent registration.
She explained that they were not disenfranchised as those were prospective voters for the November gubernatorial election in the state.
The APGA candidate clarified that such persons needed to give INEC time to integrate them into the data base.
She stated that people who transferred their cards and those that registered newly were going to be valid in November.
Azikiwe said INEC has been doing very well in the ongoing by-election, saying, “I have not seen anybody, who complained, though I can’t tell for everywhere, it’s 166 polling units.
“There is no way I will get information about all the polling units, but the places I have seen so far, materials arrived very early.
The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the death of the Sen. Ifeanyi Ubah, who represented Anambra South in the Senate in July, 2024 necessitated the conduct of a bye-election.(NAN)
