Anambra Guber: Vote buying, violence mar exercise

The governorship election in Anambra State held on Saturday was marred by irregularities, especially allegations of massive vote buying.

SOCIETY WATCH reports that about 15 political parties slugged it out on Saturday with the incumbent governor, Prof. Chukwuma Soludo, who contested for re-election on the platform of the All Progressives Grand Alliance, APGA.

Major contenders included Soludo of APGA, Nicholas Ukachukwu of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Jude Ezenwafor of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, and George Moghalu of the Labour Party, LP.

While the turnout in several local government areas were not bad, reports of vote buying and pockets of violence in some polling units marred the exercise.

Vote buying

.Several party leaders and candidates alleged vote buying in polling units across the state despite a series of warnings by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, and the law enforcement agencies.

It was alleged that some party agents were paying between N20,000 and N30,000 to electorates, to vote for their candidates.

Voters around Awka South, alleged that APGA gave them N5,000 while APC offered as high as N10,000 to induce votes.

We heard that some parties are giving people N10,000 to N15,000 – Soludo

Governor Soludo, who cast his vote in his Ofiyi Square, polling unit 002, Isuofia in Aguata Local Government Area, raised the alarm, stating that some parties were buying votes in Nnewi South LG.

“We have also received reports about Nnewi South Local Government Area, where someone was sharing N15,000 for each vote, maybe because he is desperate to win in that local government.