Bayelsans lament ‘shoddy’ local council election

Bayelsa residents, yesterday, lamented the irregularities and ‘shoddy’ local council election conducted by the Bayelsa State Independent Electoral Commission (BYSIEC).Voter apathy was observed in units visited by The Guardian.

The three local councils visited included Yenagoa, Kolokuma/Opokuma and Sagbama. BYSIEC had fixed the poll, after a series of court orders and litigations by the some opposition parties.

Aside poor turnout and non-availability of electoral materials, protest from about 42 political parties, under the Inter-Party Advisory Committee (IPAC),  also affected the election.

Meanwhile, the state government has applauded the process as free, fair and credible.The State Governor, Seriake Dickson, Speaker of the State House of Assembly, Tonye Isenah, Commissioner for Information, Daniel Iworiso-Martins and his Youth Development counterpart, Udengs Eradiri, all applauded the process.

Dickson stated this shortly after casting his vote at Oruere-wari Polling Unit 05, Ward 2 in Toru Orua, Sagbama Local Council.A statement by his Special Adviser on Media Relations, Fidelis Soriwei, quoted the Governor as saying that contrary to concerns raised about the council election, preliminary security reports across the entire state indicated that the exercise was peaceful and hitch-free.