Information reaching The Eagle Online from Adamawa State is that there is a massive turnout of voters for the state’s governorship election, which is in progress.
Sources said that this is more so in the major towns of the state, especially the state capital, Yola.
It was learnt shortly after midday that voting had commenced in most parts of the state.
It was learnt that the majority of the early callers at the polling booths were civil servants who have not been paid for about four months.
Sources also told The Eagle Online that the former Governor of the state, who is also the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, Alhaji Murtala Nyako, is not leaving anything to chance in his bid to reclaim the governorship, which was taken away from him by a ruling of the Supreme Court two weeks ago.
Nyako, it was learnt, still met with stakeholders in the state’s politics till the wee hours of today.
It was learnt that the Governor of Taraba State, Dabababa Suntai, who was elected on the platform of the PDP, has been in Adamawa State in the last two days to help Nyako.
Suntai is said to be in Ganye Local Government Area of the state where he has been making a case for Nyako on why he should be re-elected.
It was also learnt that Suntai’s deputy, Abubakar Sani Danladi, has also relocated to Adamawa State in the bid to assist Nyako.
Abubakar is said to be pulling the strings for Nyako in Mubi Local Government Area of Adamawa State.
When Alhaji Ibrahim Modibbo, the spokesman of the campaign organisation of the candidate of the Action Congress of Nigeria, Markus Gundiri, was asked to comment on the presence of Suntai and Manasseh in the state, he expressed surprise at the development.
Modibbo, however, said that both Suntai and Manasseh must be up to something fishy.
He said that it was against the norm and that it amounted to the intimidation of voters.
He said: “They must be here to help the PDP and Nyako rig the election.
“But the good news is that the voters are very vigilant.
“It is very clear that the voters are bent on not allowing Nyako return to the Government House and no amount of intimidation or presence of people from outside this state can achieve that.”
The Independent National Electoral Commission has expressed satisfaction with the conduct of the election so far.
The INEC Chairman, Prof. Attahiru Jega, had before the election promised a hitch-free exercise.
Jega’s spokesman, Kayode Idowu, told The Eagle Online that the commission is satisfied with the conduct of the election so far.
In a telephone interview, Idowu said: “It is going on fine. Everything has gone on smoothly so far, even as we can see from the live coverage by television stations.
“Accreditation started on time. Voting also started on time.
“There has not been a hitch in the election. It is going on smoothly.”
Apart from Nyako and Gundiri, others seeking to occupy the Adamawa State Government House in the ongoing election are the candidate of the African Democratic Congress, Zainab Kwonchi; the candidate of the All Nigeria Peoples Party, Musa Kam; and the candidate of the Congress for Democratic Change, Alhaji Buba Marwa, who is a former Military Administrator of Lagos State and former High Commissioner of Nigeria to South Africa.