By Bashir Hassan Abubakar
Presidential and national assembly elections in Bauchi state which commenced very early across polling units in the state has been adjudged commendable and fair to some extent.
Our correspondent who monitored the exercise in the state said accreditation and voting commenced as early as 8am in most of the polling units visited with large number of voters , especially women troop out to cast votes for candidates of their choice
With the presence of security operatives at strategic places across the state, electorate were able to perform their civic rights under peaceful atmosphere .
After casting his vote alongside his wife and other family members , Bauchi state governor, Sen. Bala Mohammed commended INEC for the exercise and encouraged electorate to vote for good candidates.
He also expressed his optimism on victory of his party, the PDP at the polls.
While PRP Gubernatorial candidate of PRP in the State, Barrister Ahmed Umar Faruk lauded the exercise, he also applauded the cashless policy of current administration, which according to him has mitigate the incidence of vote buying that has been the practice in previous elections across the country.
Right Honorable Abubakar Suleiman the state house of assembly also expressed his satisfaction with the conduct of the election but voice out his reservation on the erratic function of the Biamodal Voters Accreditation System (BVAS) machine that tend to disenfranchise some electorate due to technical hitch. He then called on INEC to improve in the next election that is scheduled for 11th March, which is two weeks from now .
Dr. Muhammad Chindo Ilelah, the Bauchi South Senatorial candidate under platform of APGA also shared his views on the election which he described as calm and peaceful.
Though the general atmosphere of the election in Bauchi was peaceful, there were some complaints of late arrival of INEC officials to commence the voting process.
As at the time of filing this report, results from some polling units within the state are beginning to trickle in.