Onitsha (Anambra) – The Chairman of Anambra Central Traditional Rulers Council, Igwe Chukwuemeka Ilouno, has commended the electorate in the state for their comportment and maturity at Saturday’s elections.
“From what we saw, the electorate, have moved a huge step forward in election maturity,’’ he said.
Ilouno, who spoke with the newsmen in Onitsha, said he observed people sitting and waiting long hours without any one being annoyed or murmuring to stir trouble.
“What happened yesterday and this morning was interesting. For the first time, nobody in a crowd of number of people was complaining or murmuring of time wasting or being under the heat from the sun.
“They waited so patiently, quietly and with high hopes from 8 a.m. to about 7p.m. and 730 p.m., in most polling units across the state.
“I think the latest development shows that the electorate are growing, and it is good for our democracy. Its overall benefit would be seen on our socio-economic status as a nation.
“With this, local and foreign investors can trust Nigeria for a peaceful electoral transition and they will not panic over their investments any longer,’’ he said.
He added that even the aged waited to see the conclusion of the exercise in their polling units.
“My mother left home at 8 a.m. and I only got to see her at about 6.30 p.m. after she had cast her vote,’’ he said.
The monarch, however, said that officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) performed below what was expected of them.
“Most of the INEC staff did not master how the card readers function in the first place, which created a lot of confusion and time wasting.
“Secondly, the electoral body did not provide electricity or light for polling centres, where the exercise continued into the dark hours of the night,’’ he said.