The 2023 presidential election in various parts of Nigeria, opened on Saturday with some interesting side attractions with some of the candidates already casting their votes in their different locations while others are yet to arrive.
Early enough President Muhammadu Buhari, who has been at his base since Thursday, cast his ballot at hi polling unit in Daura, Katsina state at polling unit 003, Sarkin Yarn A ward, after which he showed off his ballot papers to the voters around his polling unit.
Elsewhere, operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) were spotted at the polling unit of Bola Tinubu, presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), before the commencement of Saturday’s elections.
Tinubu, one of the four leading presidential candidates, is expected to vote at his polling unit 085 in ward 3, Ikeja Local Government Area of Lagos state.
TheCable reports that as of 9:50 am, voting was yet to commence at the polling unit as voters waited for officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), adding that the former governor of Lagos state was also yet to arrive at the venue for accreditation and voting.
Though the delay in the commencement of voting came despite INEC’s directive that voting would commence by 8:30am the EFCC operatives were seen alongside other security operatives on the ground to ensure a peaceful atmosphere and clampdown on suspected fraudulent activities during the elections.
On Friday, the EFCC intercepted the sum of N32.4 million suspected to be for buying votes in the state, with Abdulrasheed Bawa, the chairman earlier advising operatives of the agency assigned to monitor elections “to show courage and not give room for unscrupulous persons to undermine the integrity of the elections through financial inducement.”
Elsewhere in Agulu, Anaocha Local Government Area of Anambra State, Peter Obi, was seen in the midst of a horde of reporters and local residents in his residence early in the morning, as he took a work around to monitor events after observing his routine exercise and prayers.
