Bayelsa Governorship Supplementary Poll: LIVE UPDATES

Welcome to Bayelsa State. PREMIUM TIMES is serving you updates on the ongoing governorship supplementary election in the state.

The exercise is about to commence in Southern Ijaw Local Government Area and some wards in some other local government areas.

The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, had declared the election inconclusive during the December poll.

Apart from Southern Ijaw LGA where the entire results were cancelled, some of the other LGAs where election were cancelled included Brass Ward 1, in Brass LGA, Tarakiri Ward, Oporoma Ward and Bassambiri Ward all in Ekeremo LGA.

Election was also cancelled in Ologi Ward in Ogbio LGA, Asamabiri in Sagbama LGA and Attissa Ward in Yenagoa LGA of the state.

As at Friday evening, INEC is said to have distributed electoral materials to all the affected areas while security agencies have deployed their officers and men too.

The Inspector General of Police, Solomon Arase, had announced the deployment of no fewer than 5,000 officers and men while a DIG, an AIG and three police commissioners were also deployed to the state to ensure a hitch-free poll.

Live Blog

15.27

A senior electoral officer at Akaibiri Ekpetiama, Yenagoa, complained that hoodlums made several attempts to hijack electoral materials from polling units in the area.

According to him,  the timely intervention of the police and military personnel saved the day.

He said after voting and counting were completed, the hoodlums would not allow for the result of the election to be written.

He said that the result had been declared at the area.

DIG Arugungu directed that the result and electoral materials should be moved to INEC headquarters.

The security team led by the DIG, Police Commissioner, Director SSS, Commander, NSCDC, Commander, FRSC and others, escorted the electoral officers and materials out of the area

14.41

Unit 5, Ward 10, Yenagoa

APC 52

PDP 90

14.39

Some results are trickling in.

Oyeke Open Space, Unit 9, Ward 10,Yenegoa LGA

APC 78

PDP 61

DPC 1

APGA 3

Voided votes 2

PPA 1

APA 1

Total votes 147

14.30

DIG Arugungu and top security officials in a polling center by the creek in Yenagoa. The security demand for the Bayelsa rerun election is high.

12.03

How many INEC officials arrived their polling units by 7:30 a.m.? TMG has released data gathered by TMG Quick Count Observers in Southern Ijaw and other polling units across six Local Government Areas in Bayelsa where the supplementary election is holding today.

11.46

Ogbopinama – Ama, Unit 25, Ward 9. Voting and accreditation is going on simultaneously with large voters’ turnout.

11.41

Ward 9, unit 15, Ogbobina community. Ajoku Christy, the Presiding Officer, said electoral materials arrived early and accreditation started at 9:00 a.m. A the time PREMIUM TIMES visited, voting had gone far and the turnout is said to be impressive.

11.33

Crowd of voters at Ward 9, Unit 21, Okordi, Amasoma in Southern Ijaw LGA

11.23

Ward 10, Unit 14, Amasoma, Southern Ijaw LGA. Accreditation and voting had started.

Yakubu Bivan, Presiding Officer, said accreditation stared at about 10.33a.m. He said electoral material arrived at 8:00 a.m.

He maintained that the card reader has worked well unlike in the past election. Only a few voters were not not accredited due to card reader failure.

11.12

Government Secondary School, Ogoni in Amasoma used as one of the distribution centers for Southern Ijaw LGA.

Dr. Jewel Tubonimi, a community leader in Amasoma, said there was a skirmish in the early hours of the day which forced electoral officers to return to the distribution center.

PREMIUM TIMES learnt there was attempt by gunmen to hijack electoral materials along the waterway and so the movement to the riverine communities was halted.

11.01

In Ogbian Square polling unit in Attissa II in Yenagoa LGA, the population of security officers is nearly equal voters’.

10.57

While voters at the polling units are at each other’s neck, this market is peacefully trading in Yenagoa.

10.25

There are reports that some youth are trying to disrupt the conduct of the election in Ekeremo Local Government Area.

10.24

Voting has commenced at Ogbian Square polling unit in Attissa II in Yenagoa LGA. Voters queuing to vote, security officers and electoral officers at the center.

09.59

Erewari Compound, unit 6, Ward 10, Yenegoa. Counting has commenced as DIG Arugula vows to arrest electoral officers and politicians from the area if the election is disrupted.

08.38

There is restriction of movement in the state, the police public relations officer has confirmed. The police is deploying massively to enforce the restrictions.

08.22

The new Bayelsa Commissioner of Police, Peter Ogunyanwo, about to address a standby force for the rerun poll in Southern Ijaw.

Bayelsa Governorship Supplementary Poll: LIVE UPDATES