Notwithstanding the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) request to people to stay at home, eligible voters in Anambra State yesterday cast their ballots for the presidential and National Assembly candidates of their choice in large numbers.
Voting had not started as of 2:00 p.m. in some locations, however, including Idemili North (Awada), Ogbaru, Ihiala, Anambra East, and Ekwusigo local councils, where gunmen frequently operate at will and have killed several police officers, including a Divisional Police Officer (DPO) last week.
A few locations, including the well-known Unizik Junction Market 1, had issues with the Biomodal Voter Accreditation System (BIVAS). The machine’s capacity was insufficient to handle the 1,671 registered voters in the polling place.
But there were no instances of vote-buying, absentee voting, or violence in the state.
Many roadways in the state were empty as eligible voters made their way to their polling places, halting business operations.
Voters in the state began swarming to their polling places as early as 8:00 am.
Voting began at around 8:40 am at Polling Unit 019, Ward 2, for Labour Party (LP) presidential candidate Peter Obi in Agulu, Anoacha local council.