Tina Amanda
The election in Abua/Odual local government area of Rivers State was described as violence-free as the electorate exercised their franchise peacefully due to huge security presence in the local area.
Our correspondent who monitored the election said the voting process in Odual started by 12noon due to the late arrival of electoral materials to the polling units.
Chairman of Abua/Odual, Daniel Daniel, also confirmed that the electoral process started behind schedules due to logistics as there were no provisions for RAC Centers.
“We started a bit late because from Abua you have to come through Yenegoa to get to Odual. The issue is about logistics, the electoral materials go to the headquarters in Abua first before getting to wards in Odual.
“If Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission (RISEC) had created RAC centres just as INEC usually do and keep their Staff at the corper’s lodge and the secondary school with a security presence, it would have made the electoral materials be distributed on time to various polling units in Odual.
“RISEC do not have that kind of logistics so, they do central distribution that was the cause of the delay”
Some of the voters in Ward 1, 2, 7 and 10 expressed satisfaction that the election was free and fair, noting that they have voted the candidate of their choice.
They also expressed confidence that the People’s Democratic Party PDP will win out of the seventeen (17) political parties that participated in the election.
