Connected Development (CODE), a civil society organization, has severely criticized the purported attack and suppression of votes in Lagos State.
The group’s Chief Executive Officer, Hamzat Lawal, criticized the crime while briefing reporters on its observations during the governorship elections in various states.
The organization expressed worry about the governorship election’s conduct in several polling locations where the election was held.
According to the organization, there was violence in a number of voting places across the country.
We identified one of the impacted places as Lagos State, Ojo/Iba LCDA Local Government Area, Polling unit: Princess Eneni Street, Victory Estate, Polling unit code: 091.
“For example, in Ebonyi State, one of our own, an accredited Uzabe field observer, Uzodimma Lucy Ogodo was brutally attacked for refusing to vote for a particular party. This is unacceptable and against the tenets of democracy which we strive so hard to maintain as a nation.”
”The democratic contract of our country dictates that we as citizens have the exclusive right to determine who our leaders are and we must protect this right, and this is why we are again calling on security agencies to act swiftly and ensure justice is served,” Hamzat added.
The group also commended INEC for the early opening of polls in 79% of polling units it observed.
”We must commend the functionality of the BVAS in this election. This indicates the commission’s commitment to embracing this new technology in our electioneering process.”
