The Centre for Democracy and
Development (CDD) says observers deployed to monitor supplementary election in
Kano were stoned and disallowed from performing their duty.
Idayat Hassan, the CDD director,
said on Saturday in a preliminary statement on the supplementary election was
full of intimidation.
“This electoral cycle has
witnessed so much intimidation, harassment and attack on voters, journalists,
observers and INEC officials,” the statement read.
“This unfortunate development
however took an unprecedented turn in the Kano supplementary elections where
party agents and thugs intimidated and attacked voters and observers in the
course of exercising their franchise or monitoring the process.
“A CDD Observer in Gama LGA,
Gwagwarwa 5 centre, Polling Unit 010 A & B, Kano State, with 756 registered
voters was harassed by a mammoth crowd when he tried to take pictures of the
voting process. In Gama LGA, KofarMazugal, Masaka Primary School centre polling
unit 051 with 752 registered voters, stones were thrown at our observers in
order to prevent them from observing the polling processes.
“The high level of intolerance
against poll monitors was not limited to observers. We also confirmed the
harassment of two journalists. In Minjibir LGA of Kano State, a journalist from
the National Television Authority (NTA) was attacked and his car was vandalised
when covering the polling process. Similarly, we confirmed that one of the crew
members of Television Continental (TVC) was harassed by political thugs.”
CDD said the widespread violence
and disruption of polling distressing, especially how thugs took over the
elections forcing voters to vote along a party line, stoning voters and violently
disrupting the process.
The groups added that despite
several attempts to entrench peaceful electoral democracy in Nigeria, elections
have been marred by upsurge of violence.
“We also received a report of an
attack on INEC ad-hoc officials and party agents in Zaki Biam, Ukum LGA, Benue
State. The level of impunity at which this gruesome act is being prosecuted by
hoodlum at the ballot box and theinability of security agents to respond
adequately and hold perpetrators accountable are sources of concern.”
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pls mention the party that invite the thugs
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