Clashes, fraud allegations persist in Kano, Benue, Bauchi

Thugs wielding dangerous weapons on Saturday disrupted voting in some polling units in Kano State at Gama and Yelwa in Nassarawa and  Dala local government areas respectively.

The gangs armed with sticks, knives and machetes began patrolling the newly tarred road in Gama as soon as the number of security personnel which earlier swarmed the area in the early hours of the day was drastically reduced.

Some of the miscreants were seen openly smoking substances suspected to be Indian hemp. They forced several vehicles belonging to the media and election observers off the road.

On sighting the Hilux vehicle conveying Punch reporters, one of the thugs was overheard telling his colleagues to seize any camera.

The News Agency of Nigeria reported that the thugs disrupted the electoral process at Suntulma  Gama Primary School in Nassarawa Local Government, sending voters away from their polling units.

NAN reported that trouble began at the primary school when the reporters tried to interview some voters who were denied access into the classrooms where there were some polling units.

While trying to escape during the attack, some of the journalists fell on ground and one of them had to take refuge in a  mosque Some voters alleged that they were not allowed to vote  as they were chased out of the area.

A resident, Aminu Tijjani,   said he went to the primary school to cast his vote at his polling unit but had to return to escape the attack.

“The situation is very bad and this is not how to conduct an election where people or voters are denied the opportunity to vote,” Tijjani said.

Another voter, Sani Abdullahi, said he came to vote as early as 8am, but was scared away by about 10 suspected hoodlums.

Earlier, some reporters including Ted Odogwu, of Sunday PUNCH, escaped with injuries as they scampered for safety when suspected thugs attacked reporters in the tension soaked ward.

An eye witness told one of our correspondents that trouble started when the angry thugs challenged one of the reporters later identified as Jerry Nmeribeh, of Authority Newspaper for attempting to take photographs.

In the chaos which ensued, voters, who were standing in line waiting for their turn to vote, ran for dear life before a reinforcement of policemen restored sanity.

Kano Commissioner, others attacked in Dala

In Dala Local Government Area of the state, the state Commissioner for Information, Youths and Culture, Mallam Mohammed Garba was attacked by suspected thugs in the Yelwa Ward.

Garba was one of several monitors of the APC in Saturday’s supplementary governorship  election.

The yet to be identified hoodlums smashed his vehicle  while he sustained an injury in his hand as  he was rescued by policemen who quickly mobilised to the scene.

When contacted by The PUNCH, Garba said, “ I’m still at a loss why the opposition would sponsor thugs to attack us. While I was being attacked at Yelwa ward,  another set of thugs were attacking our party elder, Alhaji Liti Kulkul, in Dogon Nama Ward also in the same Dala. An election is not a war.”

The governorship poll on Saturday was mainly between the Peoples Democratic Party candidate, Abba Kabir-Yusuf who polled 1,014,477 votes in the general elections, and his All Progressives Congress candidate,  Governor Abdullahi Ganduje, who got 987,810 votes. The margin between the candidates is 26,655 votes while 128, 572 votes were cancelled.

PDP  says poll is a sham

Following the disruption of the poll, the PDP in Kano State demanded the cancellation of the run-off, citing  alleged intimidation and exhibition of violence  by the  APC  and the Kano State Government.”

The acting Chairman of the PDP, Rabiu Suleiman-Bichi, who gave the position of the party at a news briefing in Kano, said the violence was a repeat  of what happened  in the Nassarawa  Local Government Area during the  March 9 governorship poll, which was declared “inconclusive” by INEC.

The party alleged that thugs were imported from outside the state to intimidate voters and ensure that the process was not free and fair.

Suleiman-Bichi said, “Today, this charade called rerun election was slated to hold in Kano and other states. Unfortunately, what we have in Kano is nothing but a sham. Reports reaching us since yesterday are that thugs have been mobilised by the APC and the Kano State Government to take over all the 208 polling units.

“These thugs are imported from Zamfara, Katsina, Kaduna, Plateau and other neighbouring states. These thugs are armed to teeth and posing as the electorate in the localities of the polling units.

“They freely voted with the permanent voter cards that do not belong to them. Some pose as INEC staff within the polling units, while others wear out party (PDP) agents’ tags. Our agents were denied access to the polling unit and most of them were beaten and driven away.”

APC dismisses claims, urges INEC to ignore call

In response, the state Chairman of the APC, Alhaji Abdullahi Abbas dismissed the  PDP’s claims. He said the opposition party ought to have waited for the completion of voting  before complaining  about the process.

He said, “We expected that the PDP should have waited for the completion of the exercise just like we did. They should take their  problems  to a competent court of law.

“I want to call on INEC to see to the conclusion of the exercise and we call on security agencies to intensify security to ensure adequate security in the state.”

Our correspondents, who monitored the rerun poll, reported that though the exercise took place in 28 local governments, the centre of interest for both the PDP and the APC was Gama, a key swing ward in Nassarawa Local Government Area.

There was massive turnout of voters and huge crowds of residents in the area, which is home to about 50,000 of the total of 128,324 voters expected to cast their ballots on Saturday.

Security operatives, comprising the police, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps Civil, Department of State Service, soldiers and many personnel of the Federal Road Safety Corps, had a very tough task of enforcing orderliness at key voting centres in Gama.

PDP NWC backs demands for cancellation of Kano run-off 

The national leadership of the PDP expressed its support for the call by its Kano State chapter for the cancellation  of the supplementary governorship election in the state.

The PDP said that INEC should cancel the election following its alleged disruption and bloodletting by the APC.

The PDP in a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Mr kola Ologbondiyan in Abuja on Saturday, said there were facts to show that “rampaging APC thugs violently took over polling units, attacked and chased away voters and engaged in massive thumb-printing and ballot stuffing for the APC.”

“INEC is already aware of how APC thugs attacked voters in polling units in Gama area of Kano State during which four PDP members were feared killed and many more injured before they carted away ballot boxes for stuffing for the APC.”

Also, the Coalition of United Political Parties faulted  the supplementary election held in Kano State.

It called for the cancellation of the poll and hinged its call on the claim that the exercise was characterised by bloodshed in the state.

The coalition’s position was contained in a statement made available to journalists by its spokesman, Imo Ugochinyere.

(PUNCH)