Card Reader Challenge Mars Accreditation, Voting In Edo

 

Like other parts of the country, the situation was not different in Edo State. The Presidential and National Assembly elections took off on a shaky note in Edo State with the exercise marred by massive failure of the newly introduced electronic card reader machines of INEC.

The exercise was also characterised by the lack of ballot papers and result sheets in most of the polling centres, especially in the Edo South Senatorial district.
While observers noted that the accreditation exercise started very late, the worrisome state of the electronic card reader machines further worsened the situation for voters and the ad-hoc INEC officials manning the Polling Units.

At many polling units, the card readers couldn’t identify the thumb prints of eligible voters in parts of Edo South. In Edo South Senatorial District where accreditation picked up fairly smoothly at some of the polling units, LEADERSHIP Sunday observed that some of the card readers failed to recognize PVCs while others experienced outright power challenges.

In some voting units where the card readers failed to perform, INEC officials resorted to the use of manual accreditation method.
In Edo Central Senatorial District, the turnout was impressive at almost all the polling units visited.
Checks around some polling units in the district indicated that voters started turning out for accreditation as early as 7am. Although, officials of INEC arrived as early as 8am, accreditation in most of the polling units did not start as at 9am. It was observed that security at these polling centres was heavy.
As of 9.40am, in Oredo LGA in Edo South, Ward 5, precisely in Oliha Primary School, Benin City, which hosted 10 polling units, it was observed that in spite of the impressive and large turnout of voters with their PVCs, and the readiness of INEC officials to start the accreditation exercise immediately, the challenge of card reader machines frustrated the process.
The situation was however slightly different in Ward 2, Egor LGA of Edo South when as at 9.41am, INEC and security officials were nowhere to be found. One voter who spoke with LEADERSHIP Sunday, Francis Ekhator, while lamenting the situation said, “We have been here since 6am, but there is no INEC official anywhere around. I heard that accreditation has started elsewhere but nothing is happening here.”
In Uromehe, Orhionmwon LGA, the polling unit of Edo State deputy governor, Dr. Pius Odubu, election was cancelled by the Resident INEC Commissioner.
However, the situation was a bit different at Oredo Ward 2, Unit 2, the polling unit of the National Chairman of the All Progressive Congress, APC, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun who expressed satisfaction with the card readers.