By Amos Aar
THE BENUE State Independent Electoral Commission (BSIEC) has declared the All Progressives Congress (APC) as the winner of all twenty-three local government chairmanship positions and the 276 councillorship seats following the local government polls held on Saturday, October 5, 2024.
Announcing the results in the early hours of Sunday at the BSIEC’s headquarters in Makurdi, BSIEC chairman, Terlumun Tombowua, confirmed that the commission will be presenting certificates of return to the newly elected chairmen at 2pm on Sunday.
Comrade Otene Idoko, chairman of the Inter-party Advisory Committee (IPAC), commended BSIEC for organising a credible election and extended congratulations to the APC for their sweeping success.
On his part, Benjamin Omale, Chairman of the State APC Caretaker Committee, expressed his contentment with the election results and commended BSIEC for overseeing a successful and acceptable electoral process. He also acknowledged Governor Hyacinth Alia and the party’s leadership in the state for their unwavering support, which contributed to the party’s triumph in the polls.
Meanwhile the polls were marked by low turnout of voters and late arrival of electoral materials to polling units in Makurdi, the state capital where our correspondent monitored the exercise.
At RCM primary school Adaka, electoral materials were brought to the joint ten polling units after 12pm instead of the scheduled 8am.
The chairman of Modern Market ward, Mr Lazarus Ankwagh Terlumun, explained that over 12 council wards were to vote at the Adaka RCM Primary School, Makurdi because the voters were displaced from their ancestral homes by herders-farmers crisis. But out of the 12 polling units, only 3, including Tse-Gbede RCM Primary School, Adaka and Tse-Tyohemba turned out to vote.
Making remarks after he performed his civic duty at the primary school, caretaker chairman of Makurdi local government council, Hon. James Dwem, however described the elections as free, fair and smooth, stating that even PDP members voted for APC candidates owing to wide acceptance.
“The election is a done deal because there is no opposition as far as I’m concerned because the election is already won there’s no cause for alarm and I can say that even PDP followers are even voting for APC,” Dwem said.
In some polling units, electoral materials were not made available and voters waited to no avail.
Addressing journalists at LGEA Primary School, Daudu, the BSIEC Chairman, Terlumum Tombowua, however expressed satisfaction with the turnout, describing it as “massive and unprecedented”.
The BSIEC chairman along with members of the Forum of Chairmen, State Independent Electoral Commission in Nigeria, jointly monitored the exercise in Makurdi, the state capital, and Guma LGA where the team also visited Ortese Camp of Internally Displaced persons (IDPs). He said voters were decentralised to polling units across the state with adequate security and materials for electorates to exercise their franchise without molestation.
Some of the polling units visited by the BSIEC chairman and a team of election observers include LGEA Primary School, Wurukum popularly known as Suswam Thank You, Tilley Gyado College, North Bank, Makurdi, Mbajiku Agan Toll Gate, LGEA Primary School, Ortese and RCM Primary School, Daudu.
