By Janefrance Oraka
Chief Emmanuel Chike, an INEC Registration Area Centre Coordinator (RAC) says the commencement of distribution of election materials on Friday was responsible their late delivery at polling units on Saturday.
Chike, a RAC at Port Harcourt City Local Government Area, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Saturday that INEC started to sort and distribute the materials around 6 p.m. on Friday.
He also said some of officials even arrived in the early hours of Saturday, the election day, after which they started sorting the materials for their various units.
He explained that this caused the delay in the movement of the material to the polling units on the election day.
He said that some other RAC centers were also affected by the late sorting and distribution of election materials.
Chike, however, commended the turnout of voters, saying that it confirmed the eagerness of the people to exercise their civic rights for a new president to emerge.
“I am impressed with the turnout of voters and more potential voter are still coming out.
“This means that people are interested and are eager to see the emergence of new set of the leadership in Nigeria,’’ he said.
Mr Obi Igwe, a Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) agent, said that the materials arrived late in Ward 13, Unit 16.
He said that the INEC ad hoc officers apologised and attributed materials, adding that `voting is going on smoothly at the polling unit’.
Mr David Ekwumike, an agent of All Progressive Congress (APC), at ward said that the materials came on time and election had started and was going smoothly.
One of the voters at Ward 2 Unit 24 in Obiakpor LGA Kenwchukwu Udechukwu, said `the election is going on smoothly without violence and people are abiding to the rules.’
He said the 2023 election voting process was smoother and less complicated than previous elections.
Mr Michael Obiora, the PDP agent at Ward said election materials arrived at 11 a.m. while accreditation and voting started immediately.
According to him, the voting process is moving smoothly without any violence.
“The BVAS is working fine; the process is better than any other election conducted in the country.
Also, Mr Fortune Anukem, an agent for APC in the ward said that everything was moving on smoothly. (NAN)
