Politics
#Bayelsadecides: INEC cancels election in Southern Ijaw LG
The violent eruptiins that has characterised the governorship election in parts of Bayelsa State has forced the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) officer in Southern Ijaw Local government area to announce the cancellation of election in the area.
Apart from Southern Ijaw, violence, allegedly perpetrated by political thugs and former militants also marred proceedings in Sagbama and Ekremor Local Government areas.
In Ekremor, gunmen suspected to be militants attacked the home of the Minister of State for Agriculture, Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, while in Toru-Orua, the home town of Governor Seriake Dickson, in Sagbama LG, there were reports of violence at unit 3, 2 and 1.
The gunmen reportedly stormed the polling units and chased away the All Progressives Congress (APC) supporters and giving the security personnel attached to the units a hard time.
Reacting to the spate of violence, the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief Timipre Sylva, condemned the attacks on him and his supporters by suspected thugs in the state.
Speaking through the Director of Media and Publicity of the campaign organization, Nathan Egba, condemned the armed thugs, whom he accused of causing havoc in eight local government areas of the state during the election.
He said: “Four journalists on the train of Chief Sylva were missing in Odioma for several hours after the gunshots from thugs. It took the efforts of the JTF (Operation Pulo Shield) and local vigilance group to rescue the journalists from their hiding late night of Friday.
“The unknown faces now in most of the riverine communities of Bayelsa State have been terrorising the people with gunshots to scare people away from the polling units.
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