Voting has begun peacefully amid high turnout of voters in the Saturday’s Gwaram Federal Constituency by-election.
The bye-election is taking place in Gwaram alone as the Federal Constituency has been circumscribed in one local government area.
The by-election is to fill the vacancy created as a result of the death of Mr Hassan Kila, a member representing the constituency.
Accreditation and voting started simultaneously at 8:30 a.m. with arrival of materials and electoral officials.
Some of the voters who spoke to journalists at the polling units expressed joy over the peaceful conduct of the election in the area.
Mr Aminu Musa, a voter, expressed happiness over the manner the presiding officers were conducting the accreditation and voting process, adding that “the process is very peaceful.”
Alhaji Shuaibu Gwaram and Rabiu Baba-Gwaram, also said the voting process was going smoothly without hitches.
Baba-Gwaram noted that the election witnessed high turnout of eligible voters in most polling units in the area.
Also commenting, INEC National Commissioner, Mr Festus Okoye, described the entire election process as “very impressive.”
Okoye, who led the commission’s monitoring team in the bye-election, urged the electorates to allow aged people, pregnant women and persons with disabilities to vote before others.
He also commended the security operatives in the way and manner they conduct themselves in the electoral process.
The commission had deployed 1,111 electoral officials and 854 security personnel to facilitate smooth conduct of the bye-election.
Gwaram local government has 11 Registration Areas or Electoral Wards, 248 polling units and 113,193 registered voters
