New polling units, BVAS technology disenfranchised voters in FCT polls

The creation of new polling units in some wards and deployment of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) deployed by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), have led to the disenfranchisement of many voters in the FCT polls.

Many of the voters who were unaware of their new polling units ended up not voting after they were told they could not vote in their previous units.
This is just as in some units, many voters were unable to vote due to the faulty biometrics machines deployed by the INEC.

Habakkuk Ibrahim, a PDP Agent at the polling unit 027, opposite GSS, Kuje, said many voters who were unable to “locate their polling units due to poor sensitizations by the electoral body, went home frustrated”

The polling unit with about 2500 registered voters, less than 90, persons had voted, as at 2.20pm.

An INEC official however blamed the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) for their failure to accredit more voters.

Businessday gathered at polling unit 035, behind the Area Council Secretariat, that only two people registered voters.

As of 10:30 am, the first person had voted and left

Ugoyi Shedrack, speaking on behalf of the INEC officials, said they had to stay and wait for the next voter.

At polling unit 033/ wowo unit, only four registered voters were recorded, just as only 24 voters were registered at unit 038.

Businessday gathered that out of the 78 polling units in Kuje Area Council, less than 20 had over 100 voters and above.

Read also: INEC to engage stakeholders for peaceful, credible FCT area council polls

But the polling unit 031, opposite the Deeper life Church, Kayada, over 521 were recorded as registered voters, out of which only 25 voted at about 12 noon.

The bimodal verification. We were not able to log in initially. Delays in capturing fingerprints. But this was resolved

One of the INEC officials, Usman Ahmed, described the total number of voters that turned out in some polling units as “ very low”

He blamed ignorance about the existence of new polling arrangements and general voters apathy for the poor turnout

According to Ahmed, the poor turnout can also be traced to the long-standing behaviours of non-indigenes who often don’t vote during Council polls.

“We have this long-standing issues of non-indigenes not wanting to come out and vote during area council elections”

As at the time of filing this report, hundreds of voters were still waiting to vote at the ward 027 polling unit opposite GSS.

One of the voters, Maimuna Hassan who lamented that she had to abandon her business to come out and vote, said the poor functioning of the BVAS had frustrated many to abandon voting.

“ We are tired, many of our women who came here since morning have gone home. I am just staying back because I want my Chairman to win”

Businessday gathered that less than 90 of the registered 2500 voters had exercised their voting rights.