Not less than 26 Polling units under Bwari Area Council were without officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, as at 11:40am to commence election in the ongoing FCT council election when THE WHISTLER visited.
There was no official of INEC neither was there markings to indicate the polling units will experience election as prospective voters trickled in and left immediately when no exercise was seen taking place.
Our correspondent observed that at a cluster polling units numbering PU 010, 011, 012, 013, 024, 015, 016, 017, 018, 019, 020 and 021 located at Dutse Alhaji I & II Dutse Primary School, there was no election or any sign of it at 10:31am.
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Also at the PU008 Katampe/Katampe Village Square, no election had taken place at 10:55am and no INEC official or material was in sight.
A voter who identified himself as Joseph said his polling unit 008 usually saw large turn out of voters but “Today, it’s like mago mago’ (cheating) will take place. They want to vote somewhere.”
Also not far from there, at PU066 Dawaki / Dawaki Village Football Field, no election at 11:01.
Another cluster polling units comprising PU067, 068 and 069 Dawaki/LEA Primary School saw no election at 11:05 when our correspondent visited.
A woman who identified herself simply as Madam Jane said, “As you can see, there will be no election here.
“They may come late and then write figures but we will keep watch and see.”
At Katampe New Extension, PU70 and 71 with voters numbering 300 being a new polling unit, no official and no party agents by 11:12am when our correspondent visited.
But a security man who gave his name as Aruna Ayuba, working in one of the houses close to the polling unit said, “They came here to mark it but the paper removed. That was more than a month ago. They told us this is a new polling unit
“I don’t know if they will come. Nobody has come here to check,” he said.
The story is not different at the Dawaki Village PU 072 and Dawaki News Engineering 072, located opposite Gwarimpa Estate, there was no voter and no INEC official at 11:21am.
At the Katampe Extension by Grand Square Warehouse 075, only party agents were seen with men of the Nigerian Police force as at 11:30am when our correspondent visited for the third time.
The place was not marked and no official to indicate election will take place.
The same experience was seen at Katampe 11/Katampe 11 Football Field PU 100, Katampe/Primary School PU101, Katampe Extension by FCDA Office PU 102, Katampe Extension By Zeberced at Road Junction, PU103, and Katampe/Katampe by Habib Estate PU 105 between 11:36am and 11:43am when our correspondent visited the polling units.
At the Katampe Extension by FCDA, Mr Abdul, who said he’s a civil servant said, “I don’t think election will happen here. People have come and gone. I live close by so I decided to chat out here with people.
“I have seen over 12 people come and gone. It’s a sad reality that we don’t want to learn. Common Area Council Election, INEC can’t organise. It’s a shame.”