The outgoing Governor of Edo State, Governor Godwin Obaseki and Labour Party (LP) candidate, Olumide Akpata have casted their votes in the ongoing Edo State Governorship Election.
TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports Obaseki voted at Emokpae Model Primary School, PU 19, Ward 4 in Oredo Local Government Area of the state while Akpata cast his vote in Oredo ward 6, unit 11.
Speaking shortly after voting, Obaseki said: “You can see the turnout. People came out. You can see the enthusiasm. Its not midday yet and the ballot box in my polling unit is already full.
“So, clearly that tells you people are very interested because they have been mobilised. They are very interested in this election.
“For now, I am glad with what I see. The process in my unit has been quite smooth and efficient. I hope the collation process will be the same; that it will be peaceful, and that the results would be counted and there will be no disruptions.
“I am glad that with the military presence in the State. The federal security agencies have taken over the State. So, at this point in time, I am not the chief security officer. I believe the IG is the chief security officer.
“The military have done well. I am pleased. The Chief of Defence Staff came to see me to give assurances that his men will be on ground and fully deployed, and I have seen that deployment. I am glad that the military is here as a back up but clearly, we are not too sure of what the police is doing”.
Edo election: Akpata votes in Oredo, commends voting process
Olumide Akpata, Labour Party (LP) candidate in the Edo Governorship Election has cast his vote in Oredo ward 6, unit 11, commending the voting process.
Speaking to journalists after voting at about 10:30 am, Olumide said “I voted according to the voting process and everything went well.
“I want to hope that this is the experience of every Edo voter. I cannot make assumptions standing here. I am going to wait for feedback from around the different units and 192 wards in the state.
“We are hopeful that this will be the experience of every Edo voter. I am calling on INEC that the playing field should remain level. Nobody should be given any undue advantage.
“All party agents should be allowed into the collation centres, so that we can all witness the process. Edo election is an off cycle election so INEC should have the luxury of deploying it’s resources to show the world that they can do it well.
“‘The playing field should be totally levelled to allow the best man or women to win. I am hearing some concerning feedback from around the state but I cannot make any statement until I verify the source of my information. We have crossed one hurdle, I have voted and my supporters should be allowed to vote,” he said.
He added that the deployment of tight security personnel was good, but he however expressed concerns if the security were for the voters or certain individuals.
Edo Decides 2024: Voters defy rain to vote
Meanwhile, residents of Benin, the Edo State capital on Saturday trooped out in their numbers to cast their votes defying the heavy rain in the ongoing governorship election in the State.
The election is to elect a successor to outgoing Gov. Godwin Obaseki, whose tenure expires in November.
At the Eresonye Primary School Ward 12, in Ovia North Local Government Area, near Benin, voters filed out in their numbers not minding the rains in order to exercise their electoral franchise.
Although the process has been peaceful, there was an unusual absence of security personnel in the area. Some of the voters commended the INEC officials for the timely arrival of election materials and the early commencement of accreditation and voting.
At the Oredo ward 11 polling booth, police personnel at the gate refused journalists entrance to monitor the process even after they had presented INEC accreditation tag and official identity card showing they had been cleared to cover the election.
Similarly at the Itohan Grammar School ward on Sakponba road in Ikpoba-Okha Local Government Area, voters were seen in their numbers exercising their electoral responsibilities even with the rains falling heavily.
Scores of voters in Edo Central on Saturday trooped out to participate in the off-cycle governorship election in the state amidst a downpour.
Voting commenced at exactly 8:40 a.m. at the Eguare Primary School, Ujiogba in Esan West Local Government Area (LGA) of the state, which hosts three polling units. In spite of the rain, voters lined up for accreditation and voting, which were held simultaneously.
At the polling unit II, ward 2, some of the voters took cover with their umbrellas, while others queued in the rain. One of the voters, Samuel Samson, disclosed that the voting process started at 8:30 a.m.
“The electoral officials got here overnight, but the polling booth opened exactly at 8:30 a.m.,” he said.
At Igueben, Igueben LGA, canopies were mounted in some of the polling units to shield voters from the downpour.
Faulty BVA machines disrupt voting in Ikpoba, Benin
Malfunctioning of Biamodial Voters Accreditation (BVA) machines, meanwhile, disrupted voting at Ikpoba Okha ward 7, Unit 39, Benin. At Ikpoba ward 7, unit 39, the voting process, which started at about 8 a.m., came to a halt some minutes later and has not been restored as at 10:20 a.m. The unit, located inside Ologboshere Primary School, has 838 registered voters.
However, voting in other units within the school is going on smoothly. An Ad hoc INEC official at the unit 39, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said INEC had been informed about the faulty BVAs.
“We are waiting for another BVA so that the process could not be adversely affected,’’ he said.
Materials arrived at the centre before 8a.m. while voting started at 8 a.m.
An elderly woman at the unit, Mrs Helen Osagie, who spoke to NAN on the delay, said she arrived in unit about 7 00 a.m. Osagie commended the peaceful environment and called on INEC to replace the faulty machines on time.
“INEC should act fast to replace the faulty machines in order not to disenfranchise most of us at the polling unit,” she said.
Mr Paul Eromosele, who voted at ward 7 unit 39, commended the peaceful process.
“For now, there is peace here and everything is okay; I voted and it was not stressful and we pray the exercise ends peacefully,” he prayed.