Voting starts early, turn out massive in Kebbi

Election officials arrived early for the Gubernatorial and State Assembly Elections in Kebbi on Saturday, March 18, 2023, as voters turned out massively for the exercise.

Accreditations and voting commenced simultaneously in polling units visited by NAN in Birnin Kebbi.

Officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) arrived most polling stations before 8:30a.m. with the necessary voting materials, with large numbers of voters in the various polling units.

The INEC Presiding Officer at Garkar Magatakarda Polling Unit, Tudun-Wada Ward in Birnin Kebbi, Malam Ibrahim Usman, said they received the election materials early and were at their station by 8am.

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“We have massive turnout and as you can see more people are trooping in to cast their votes,” Usman said.

He said there had not been any hitch with the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) and the voters were behaving well.

At Marafa Ward 004, Baiti Liman Poling Unit in Birnin Kebbi, where INEC officials arrived at about 7:30 am, accreditation and voting commenced as early as 8am.

Also, accreditation and voting commenced at about 8:15a.m. at Mai-Alelu Polling Unit in Nasarawa Ward 2, where Governor Atiku Bagudu was expected to cast his vote.

“We started as early as 8:am, we are doing accreditation and voting at the same time.

“We are hoping to see more voters; even though they are many, especially the women, we hope to see more coming to vote,” the INEC official, Malam Mas’ud Aminu, said.

Some voters in Dangaladima 003, Dangaladima Ward and Shehu Zalaka 004, Gorabu and Zoramawa wards expressed pleasure over the early commencement of the election.

At Nasarawa Polling Unit 002 in Nagari College Ward, Birnin Kebbi, election officials commenced accreditation at about 8:30am amidst impressive turnout of voters.