The election to decide who becomes the next governor of Edo State took off in most of the centres across the state took off smoothly today with good turnouts recorded at the polling units.
There were however a few places where voting materials and personnel arrived late. Voters that spoke with National Point talked about easy accreditation and voting. But they noted that very few Bi-modal verification accreditation system (BIVAS) machines were used and it slowed down the process.
Just after the processes started, the rains came down in many places across the state, forcing voters and election personnel to move indoors. Some voters, who said they would have gone early to the polling units had to stay back until the rain subsided.
The candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Mr. Asue Ighodalo, however complained that it took about two hours before election personnel and materials arrived at his polling unit at Ewohinmi in Esan South-East Local Government Area.
He complained about reports that PDP supporters were being arrested and taken away by police personnel. “This is getting too much for particularly from the police and people that claim to be policemen. If police people want to be policemen, let them retire and join politics,” Ighodalo said.
The personnel and materials arrived later on and the candidate and his co-voters got accredited and voted eventually.
Governor Godwin Obaseki voted at Emokpae Primary School in Oredo Local Government Area amidst a large crowd of the local voters and journalists who created bottleneck.
A former governor of the state and leader of the APC, Senator Adams Oshiomhole, who spoke to journalists at his voting unit at Etsako West Local Government Area, said he was impressed with the early arrival of election materials and commencement of voting. He however condemned any resort to the use of violence during the voting process.
An ugly side of the process was the high rate of vote buying observed in many polling stations. The vote buyers stationed agents within the voting area to canvass votes and direct those they converted to some backyards where they were paid cash for the votes they cast.
One of the vote buyers was apprehended with his money bag at Egor Local Government Area. He was seen being taken away by an operative of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and other security operatives.
The candidate of the Labour Party, Mr. Olumide Akpata, who voted in Oredo Local Government Area, commended the process and urged the election personnel and security agencies to ensure the process is not subverted.
There are 18 candidates contesting the election, with the candidates of the PDP, Ighodalo, All Progressives Congress, APC, Monday Okpebolo, and the Labour Party, Akpata being the frontrunners.
Clifford Christopher Solomon and Iduozee Efe Paul
