Apathy, votes buying mar Delta House of Assembly by-election

APATHY, financial inducement and pockets of violence on Wednesday characterised the bye-election held to fill the vacant position left behind by late Mrs Omawumi Beatrice Udoh of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) last year.

Former occupier, Mrs Udoh, was the lawmaker representing Warri South Constituency 1 in the Delta State House of Assembly before her demise last December.

The by-election held in six wards namely: Ubeji, Obodo and Omadino (Ward 1), Ode Itsekiri (ward 2), Ogunnu, Ekorede Urhobo (ward 3), Uguwangbue, Ekorede Itsekiri (ward 4), GRA (ward 5) and Bowen Avenue (ward 6).

Checks round the wards by Tribune Online on Wednesday revealed that there were voters who were waiting earnestly for financial inducement before casting their votes to their candidate.

There were also allegations of other electoral malpractices including mass thumb printing of ballot papers in some secluded polling units.

At Ubeji ward 1, in spite of the presence of security agents and a mammoth crowd at the Ubeji Primary School where a total of 1,941 voters were expected to cast their votes in unit 15 alone, only a scanty number of voters had actually cast their votes.

A voter, who declined being identified, said he was waiting for a financial inducement from any of the candidates before casting his vote.

“How I go vote when the people never give me something? No be money I take transport come here? At least if na maggi money, dem suppose drop na,” he stated in pidgin.

As of 12:00 noon, scores of youths and female folks were seen milling around or sitting on pavements of the classrooms waiting for a financial tip before voting while officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and security agents idle away.

Representatives of some of the parties featuring candidates in the election were seen penning in names of those to collect money and vote for their candidates.

Voters were seen being handed N1,000 and above before casting their votes to wherever they were detailed to vote for.

In some cases, in some of the units of the ward, non-residents of the area were handed permanent voters cards to cast their votes to a particular candidate.

An ad-hoc staff of INEC in charge of Unit 15, Ubeji Ward 1, Mr Sharafadeen Oladosu, decried the delay in voting and the artificial low turnout.

Meanwhile, commercial activities in the constituency were under suspension while the by-election lasted.

There were negligible cases of malfunctioning card readers at GRA ward 5, unit 10, Mowoe Primary School, as 10:05a.m, as well as Bowen ward 6, unit 10.

One conspicuous occurrence at most of the polling units was the absence of agents of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) while agents of other participating parties were present.

Top candidates who are relations jostling for the House of Assembly slot are Prince Stanley Emiko of the APC and Princess (Mrs) Shola Ogbemi Daibo of Accord Party.

As of the time of filing this report, votes were being counted and at the various polling units before being transferred to the collation centre at Nana College.

An unconfirmed report, however, stated that a youth bearing a shotgun was shot dead at Ekurede Urhobo by a security agent.

Cultists and political thugs also had a free-for-all with assorted machetes at Alderstown where one person allegedly sustained serious injuries.

Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Andrew Aniamaka, who could not confirm the killing as of press time, however, condemned the action of the deceased gun-bearer.