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Voting has commenced across the seven local government areas of the Rivers South-East Senatorial District, where a by-election is being held to fill the vacant senatorial seat.
The local government areas involved are Khana, Gokana, Tai, Eleme, Andoni, Opobo-Nkoro and Oyigbo.
The election was scheduled following the death of the former senator representing the district, Barry Mpigi, who passed away in February.
Reports from the district showed a strong turnout of voters in several polling units, including B-Dere Ward 4 in Gokana Local Government Area, which comprises 21 polling units.
However, early morning rainfall delayed the movement of election materials to some locations, leading to a late start of accreditation in parts of the district.
Accreditation and voting later proceeded simultaneously in the different LGAs.
Chairman of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), Senator Magnus Abe, cast his vote at Ward 16 in Bera, his hometown in Gokana LGA.
Abe described the exercise as peaceful, noting that while the weather affected early voter turnout, participation was gradually improving. He expressed confidence that the election would be successfully conducted across the senatorial district.
“The election is very peaceful. There is no problem here. The weather has slowed turnout a bit, but I think the weather is improving and the turnout is also improving.
“So we are very confident that this exercise will be very successful across the Senatorial District,” he said.
He also urged residents to participate in the process, stressing that citizens should not only voice concerns about governance but also take part in electoral activities.
Abe commended the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for its preparations and the conduct of the election so far.
“You cannot sit in your house and complain. You cannot sit on social media and be complaining and then when it is time to do the hard work as a citizen you fail to do it.
“So my appeal to all men and women of the Rivers South-East Senatorial District is to come out en masse and participate in this exercise. It is peaceful, it is fair and it is clearly transparent.
“I want to commend INEC for what they have put together,” he stated.
Meanwhile, despite a movement restriction announced by the Rivers State Police Command from midnight Friday to 6:00 p.m. Saturday, some commercial activities continued in parts of the state.
In Tai Local Government Area, where the late Senator Mpigi hailed from, voters turned out despite the morning rainfall. Voting commenced before 9:00 a.m., with several polling units recording steady participation.
A community stakeholder, Gideon Demua, praised the turnout, saying many voters had arrived early for accreditation. However, he identified challenges with the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS), including network and technical issues in some units.
“Materials arrived on time, and you can see the massive turnout in all the Units. People are voting. The challenges we are having are with the B-VAS.
“We are having network issues, technical issues in one or two units. We expect INEC to live up to expectations,”Demua said.
In Eleme LGA, the restriction of movement appeared to have limited impact, as heavy-duty vehicles, cars and tricycles were seen operating along parts of the East-West Road.
Markets in Agbonchia, Aleto and Alesa communities remained closed, while police personnel conducted stop-and-search operations around the Trailer Park axis. Slight vehicular movement was also observed in parts of Eleme and Tai LGAs.
