FCT Decides: 10 facts about the Abuja council elections that you should know

Residents of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) today, April 9, queued under the sun and in the rain to exercise their franchise in the area council elections.

The elections were held in six area councils: Abuja municipal council, Gwagwalada, Abaji, Kuje, Bwari and Kwali.

After monitoring the elections across the six area councils, NAIJ.com lists 10 facts about the election that everyone should know.

Read below:

1. ‘Big men and women’ ignore polls in AMAC

The biggest and most viable council in Abuja, AMAC, recorded the lowest turnout of voters. This might not be unconnected to the fact that most well-to-do residents of Abuja live in this part of of the city. NAIJ.com observed that unlike some councils where electoral officers were overwhelmed with the large turnout, the reverse was the case in AMAC where the electoral officers waited for voters who trickled in bits. Popular highbrow areas in AMAC are Gwarimpa, Maitama, and Wuse II.

2. Youth corps members to the rescue

Just like previous elections where youth corps member were deployed, the Abuja area council polls would not have been successful without the help of these young Nigerians. Most presiding officers in local areas tucked away from the glamour of the city centre were serving corps members. They also were not deterred by the heavy downpour that disrupted the election at some point.

3. Strong religious beliefs play big role

NAIJ.com observed that religious beliefs also influenced the way the electorates conducted themselves. At Karon Magiji, there were separate queues for men and women. However, residents in areas like Kuje seem not to bother about such segregation as men and women queued together to perform their civic duty.

4. The era of bad card readers seem gone

In a major leap away from the tales of non-functional and or mal-functioning card readers that characterized previous elections, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) seems to have gotten its mojo back as most polling units visited by NAIJ.com team were hitch-free in terms of using the technology.

With the exception of Area one section primary school polling unit 001, where incidence form was mostly used, voters joyously voted with ease in most polling units visited.

5.Some voters came with stolen cards

Some voters at the Area one primary school polling unit tested the wrath of the law by coming to the polls with permanent voters’ cards that were not theirs. The presiding officer who is a youth corps member, Christabel Egbule disclosed to Naij.com that majority of voters brought fake and stolen voters cards to the polling unit.

”It got to a stage we had to ask those adamant that their cards are genuine to show us their ATM cards just to be further sure before we deploy the incidence form,” she told NAIJ.

6. Under age voters

There were cases of underage voters in some polling units like PU 008 Dispensary Karshi ward. Girls were seen queuing up to vote. Interestingly, security officials were unperturbed by this ugly occurrence

Underage voters on the queue

7. Inadequate materials; Pap came in handy

Some corps members who were deployed as Adhoc staff for the local elections in Nigeria’s capital city, Abuja complained of inadequate materials. For example, at polling unit 009A, Tundun Wada village, Kabusa, Lugbe, INEC officials were seen pasting voters list on the wall with pap instead of glue.

8. Activities of overzealous agents

The need to adequately educate security agents deployed during elections cannot be overemphasized. As with the trend in previous elections where some overzealous security officials believe that they can do and undo, it was reported that soldiers prevented observers and press men from passing some routes. The soldiers prevented reporters even after they properly identified themselves and provided their INEC accreditation tags.

9. Heavy security presence

True to the information that 13,000 policemen were deployed for the elections by the police command, adequate security was not wanting during the election. Strategic roads and junctions were manned by officers of the Nigerian police.

10. Stomach infrastructure:

NAIJ.com team observed a particular ward – Galadinma primary school polling unit where agents of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), distributed free meals as voters awaited result collation by INEC officials.

 

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