Frustration trailed the Area Council elections in parts of Waru on Saturday as voters decried the absence of officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) at the designated polling units in the area.
At Waru Primary School, no INEC official was present as of 10: 06 a.m., despite a significant turnout of voters who had arrived early to participate in the exercise.
Mrs Hannattu Usman, one of the voters at the polling unit, said residents had gathered as early as 7 am in anticipation of the commencement of accreditation and voting.
“We have been here since 7am. But the INEC people have not come,” she said.
According to an observation by BusinessDay, there was a strong turnout, with over 60 voters already waiting at the polling unit as of 9:47 am, but no electoral official was in sight.
The community chief, who spoke to BusinessDay, said the election was expected to commence by 10 am at the polling unit.
However, the continued absence of INEC officials raised concerns among residents about possible delays.
Security agents were observed at the polling unit, maintaining order as voters waited.
Speaking with BusinessDay, Mr Paul Odudu lamented that voters had been trooping to the polling unit since 7 am without any sign of the election process beginning.
“I am very worried about what we are seeing here this morning. This is a few minutes to 10 am, and no INEC official is here.
“There is no sign of the election process here, and we have been here since 7am,” he said.
He added, “I just hope this is not to discourage voters. It is really bad because we had more persons here earlier, but they are already dispersing. We do not know if the INEC officials will come or not.”
As of the time of filing this report, accreditation and voting had yet to commence at the affected polling units, raising fears that the delay could dampen voter turnout if not promptly addressed.
