How Epe United For Ambode

The presidential elections in Epe, Lagos State, was not without minor hitches. RAYMOND MORDI who was at the picturesque coastal town during the election, examines the significance of the exercise for the community.

THE attitude of the people of Epe, Lagos State, suggests that they were eager to vote during the historic presidential election. Before 8.00am, people were already gathered at the various polling units, waiting for the ad hoc staff of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to arrive. Some persons were noticed going round some of the neighbourhoods, reminding people of the imperative of coming out in their numbers to decide those who would lead the country in the next four years with their votes.
Though people have been on ground as early as 8.00am, the March 28 presidential election took off on a slow pace in the town. In almost all the polling units visited by our correspondent, accreditation started late. There was a considerable attention on the two polling units located within the Ogunmodede Junior and Senior College complex in Papa, Epe. This is because one of the polling units is where the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate for Lagos State, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode, voted.
Like elsewhere in the town, accreditation started late at the two polling units. It started about 09.00am. After waiting for over an hour, the people had become apprehensive before INEC ad hoc staff showed up. So, the Youth Corpers in-charge of the exercise had to apologise to the electorates, which included a lot of elderly citizens. The Corpers said they could not locate the polling unit on time and has been going round, asking for directions.
The situation in Oke Balogun area of Epe was even worse. At Ward 7, Polling Unit 3, accreditation started as late as 11am. The reason was that the polling officials had problems with the card reader assigned to the unit; they had to return it to INEC office and were allocated with another one. As a result, as at 15.50pm, when voting should have almost completed, they were still doing accreditation manually for those whose fingerprints could not be captured by the card reader.
At the Ogunmodede School complex, the governorship candidate of the APC, who lives just a stone throw away, arrived at the venue at about 09.30am with his wife and promptly joined the queue. Four hundred and fifty seven persons are registered to vote at this polling unit.
Ambode completed his accreditation at 10.45am, after queuing for about one hour and fifteen minutes. Speaking with reporters after the accreditation, he expressed satisfaction with the process so far. He acknowledged that the process was slow, but he thanked the people for their patience. His words: “So far, so good. Accreditation started in this polling unit at 09.00am and it’s been peaceful; it’s been orderly. Everybody is taking their turn. I was on the queue myself. What’s important is that I’ve been given the chance to exercise my constitutional right and I’m happy doing that.”
As at the time Ambode did his accreditation, there were six incidences of fingerprints of prospective voters not being captured by the card reader. One of such person is Rebecca Sanni. The INEC ad hoc staff who attended to her, politely asked to come back later to fill the incidence form to enable her to vote.
But, it was four hours after Ambode did his accreditation that he had the opportunity to vote. Voting could not commence due to the late arrival of ballot papers. Prospective voters were however orderly; they did not leave the premises, but waited patiently for the exercise to begin.

Voting eventually got underway by 2.30pm. Ballot papers arrived at 1.55pm. The APC governorship candidate arrived the scene at 2.40pm to cast his ballot, with his wife and a retinue of followers. But, the second polling unit located within the same premises had to wait much longer to commence voting. Ballot papers arrived after 3.00pm.
After casting his ballot, Ambode lamented the fact that the election has not been hitch-free across the state. He said: “So far, so good. But, the feedback we’re getting from other points indicate that there’s been some shoddiness by INEC. The feedback suggests that accreditation has not started as we speak in areas like Ketu, Gbagada, Agric-Ikorodu, Ikoyi. We also understand that the people who collected ballot papers and result sheets for some part of the riverine areas in Epe here are nowhere to be found.
“So, we’re wondering what’s going on in INEC? They need to answer to some of these troubling questions. We believe strongly that with the amount of resources committed to that institution and the level of prepardness that it is believed to have put in place, one had believed that it was going to be hitch-free. I want to strongly appeal to INEC that it should be responsive enough to find out where those hitches are and respond quickly. It is either they extended the voting time or ensure that those that have been disenfranchised are able to observe their civic obligations at the end of the day.”
There were similar reports of people whose fingerprints could not be captured by the card reader all over the town. In most cases, such people eventually voted, after filling the incidence form and getting accredited manually. But, in a particular polling unit located within Zumratul Islamiyyah Primary School, about 20 persons whose fingerprints could not be captured by the card reader were very eager to vote. As at 1.00pm, they had not been accredited. One of the party agents was noticed complaining to the polling officers about the fate of such persons, in the light of the explanation that only five incident forms were available. The implication was that 15 others would not vote. But, when our correspondent returned to the polling unit later, the issue was said to have been resolved.
There was a mild drama at Oke Owode area of Epe, Ward A7, Polling Unit 5, when one Ikuforiji Mosidat alleged that someone has voted in her place. According to Ikuforiji, she went back home after doing her accreditation in the morning, but when it got to her turn to vote, she was told that she had voted.
She said: “Look at my left index finger, they marked it, indicating that I have done my accreditation. Bit look at my right index finger, it has not been marked. I’m surprised, they have marked my name in the register, saying I have voted, but I have not.”
Generally, the people of Epe conducted themselves peacefully. They waited practically the whole day at polling units to vote and to see the end of the process. But, the process was marred by logistic problems such as the late arrival of ad hoc staff and electoral materials, the failure of card readers to identify fingerprints, the unavailability of incidence forms and unavailability of result sheets in some polling units. Epe started as a traditional settlement of the Ijebu people. But, it has since evolved into a cosmopolitan centre.
When the news of the boat mishap broke, voting was disrupted, as some of the women were distraught with grief.