Gov. Seriake Dickson of Bayelsa has expressed dissatisfaction with the performance of the card readers used for the Presidential and National Assembly elections.
Dickson expressed his dissatisfaction shortly after casting his vote alongside his wife, Rachel Dickson, at the Oru-erewari Polling Unit 5, Ward 2, in Toru-Orua, Sagbama local government area of the state.
He advised INEC to take urgent steps to address the failure of the card readers by resorting to manual accreditation so as not to disenfranchise eligible voters across the state.
While urging INEC to ensure a free, fair and credible electoral process, he, however, called on Nigerians to exercise patience and understanding over the situation.
“The election in this area is going on smoothly and reports we have received across the state also gives an indication of a peaceful exercise.
“But, there are issues here and there concerning the card readers and that is a concern that we have always had from the beginning.
“There are some reports about the failure of the card readers to perform optimally. I hope that at the end of the exercise so many of our people will not be disenfranchised.
“We believe that INEC will know what to do to get it right. I like to appreciate and commend Bayelsans for the large turnout and for their peaceful conduct,” Dickson said.
He commended Bayelsa residents for turning out en masse to exercise their franchise and the maturity exhibited during the accreditation and actual voting process.
According to Dickson, there is no reported case of violence associated with the election.
He expressed optimism that the April 11 election will be peaceful as well.
The INEC Presiding Officer of the polling unit, Ms Christiana Alabi, also lauded the people for the orderly manner they conducted themselves.
Alabi said that a total of 466 eligible voters were accredited for voting in the polling unit.
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