The councils election on Saturday in Calabar, Cross River State was characterised by voter apathy, the News Agency of Nigeria reports.
A NAN correspondent, who monitored the election, reports that in Calabar, most polling centres did not record a large turnout of voters.
It was also observed that only the Peoples Democratic Party had agents in all the polling centres visited.
The three other parties that contested the election: the All Progressives Grand Alliance, the National Conscience Party and the Progressive Peoples Alliance – did not have agents at the centres visited.
An official of the Cross River State Independent Electoral Commission, Theresa Offiong, told NAN that out of over 2,000 registered voters in Polling Unit 7, Ikot Isie, only 200 were accredited.
Offiong said that so far, over 100 had voted and added that apart from the low turnout of voters, all relevant materials were available.
She said: “Apart from low turnout of voters, we have no administrative challenges.
“All the materials are available and as people come, we accredit them and they vote accordingly.”
Also, a PDP agent at the centre, Bassey Asuquo, decried the low turnout of voters.
“Although the turnout is poor but the situation has been peaceful,” Asuquo said.
Asuquo noted that the poor response of the electorate might not be unconnected with the lack of restriction of movement.
Ekpenyong Akpanika, a party chieftain in Calabar, told NAN that the low turnout might be due to the earlier rumour of the postponement of the election because of a suit by the All Progressives Congress against CROSIEC.
Akpanika said: “I think the court case affected so many people.
“A lot of people thought the election had been postponed, so they decided to stay back.”
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