BEVERLY HILLS, CA, November 17, (THEWILL) – Chief Willie Obiano, the Governorship candidate of the All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA), is clearly ahead in the Anambra State Governorship election conducted on Saturday.
According to results viewed by THEWILL’s coalition of reporters monitoring the poll, Obiano is clearly ahead in Anambra North Senatorial District, which has seven LGA, where the PDP candidate, Comrade Tony Nwoye, hails from.
The APGA candidate is also ahead in Anambra Central, the incumbent State Governor, Mr. Peter Obi’s district.
There was however no election in Idemili North and South in the zone, which is also home to APC’s candidate, Senator Chris Nwabueze Ngige, due to late arrival of electoral materials.
INEC has rescheduled the elections in the area alongside others with same issue for today.
UPDATE…
The candidate of the ruling All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), in Anambra State, Chief Willie Obiano, has opened an unassailable lead, though the projection is unofficial, and there are strong indications that he would emerge winner in the Governorship election conducted by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Saturday.
Nonetheless, candidates of the other political parties in the race are crying blue murder as they complained of irregularities during the polls.
Reports filtering in from across the State indicate that APGA seems to be in the lead, especially in the North Senatorial district where the party’s candidate, Obiano, and his People’s Democratic Party, PDP, counterpart, Comrade Tony Nwoye, hail from.
There are seven Local Government Areas that make up the Anambra North Senatorial zone, and APGA is reportedly leading in all the Local Government Area in the zone.
APGA is also said to be ahead of other political parties in the Central Senatorial zone, where the incumbent governor, Mr. Peter Obi, and the party’s national chairman, Chief Victor Umeh, come from.
The party is also said to be leading in Awka North, Awka South, Anaocha and Njikoka Local Government Areas within this senatorial district.
However, election did not hold in some parts of Idemili North and South Local Government areas both of which are within the Central senatorial zone, and the stronghold of the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Senator Chris Nwabueze Ngige, following late arrival of electoral materials in most of the polling units in the area.
In the South Senatorial district, report of the governorship election showed that APGA at the time of filing this report had swept majority of the votes in three out of the seven Local Government Areas that make up the State.
Although the governorship election was generally peaceful in most of the polling units visited, there were cases of late commencement of accreditation of voters in some polling units.
Also, the names of some prospective voters were missing in the voters register thus making it impossible for those affected to cast their votes.
For instance, in Uruezide polling unit in Alor ward 1, Idemili South Local Government, which is the polling unit of the APC governorship candidate, Senator Ngige, some of the prospective voters could not find their names in the voter register, even though they had voters’ card.
Mrs. Matilda Odinanwa complained that she was not allowed to vote because her name could not be found on the voters register in her polling unit.
Similarly, the candidate of the PDP, Comrade Nwoye; his father, Nwabisi and mother ,Christiana, along with many other prospective voters could not exercise their civic duties at the Ofianta square polling unit Nsugbe ward 1, in Anambra East Local Government Area in the North senatorial district as their names could not be found in the register of voters for the polling unit.
Meanwhile, Senator Ngige, has called on INEC to cancel the governorship election, alleging irregularities in the poll , including late arrival of electoral materials, which, he claimed, was deliberately orchestrated by the Commission in collaboration with APGA to shortchange him and his party in the election.
He alleged that INEC ad-hoc staff, especially the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members recruited to participate in the conduct of the election boycotted the exercise because they were not paid their allowances by the electoral commission.
When contacted, the image maker of the INEC in the State, Mr. Frank Egbo, said election was cancelled in only 67 polling units in Obosi ward 1, Idemili North Local Government, adding that the election will be conducted on Sunday.
Security was tight in the State during the election. Major roads were taken over by the combined team of military and mobile policemen who subjected even electoral officers and journalists to a thorough screening, before they were allowed to pass through the various check-points.
On the flip side, the former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Mallam Nasir el-Rufai, who had earlier arrived the State to man Senator Ngige’s ‘Situation Room’ was confined to his hotel in Awka, by the men of the State Security Services, SSS, who allegedly prevented him from moving round the State.
EMMA UCHE, AWKA
About the Author
