The Kogi State Resident Electoral Commissioner, Professor James Apam, has blamed the low turnout of voters in the Saturday’s Kogi West senatorial district rerun on poor mobilisation by political parties.
He was speaking against the backdrop of voters’ apathy observed in most polling units visited by DAILY POST in Lokoja wards.
Apam said that instead of the political parties to embark on membership drive aimed at convincing their supporters on the need to come out and vote for them, they turned around to blame the Independent National Electoral Commission for poor turnout of voters.
Some voters told our correspondent, that the low turnout could be blamed on the fear of a repeat of the violence that greeted the November 16 election.
Bala Bariga, a Peoples Democratic Party chieftain at Ward C Polling Unit 001 attributed the low turnout to citizens’ mindsets that their votes don’t count.Abike Dabiri-Erewa, Chairman/CEO Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NIDCOM) on Saturday expressed satisfaction over the justice meted out to the police officer that killed a Nigerian in South Africa.
In a statement by the Head of Media and Public Relations Unit of the Commission, Abdur-Rahman Balogun, in Abuja, she said:”We are glad that justice has been done”.
”We have always stated that there have to be consequences for actions. We are glad that this case finally came to an end and South Africa has demonstrated the political will to deal with xenophobia,” she said.
The NIDCOM boss implored Nigerians in South Africa to adhere to President Muhammadu Buhari’s advice to be good ambassadors of Nigeria where ever they find themselves.
Dabiri-Erewa added that Nigeria and South Africa would work towards a united Africa with a view to bringing to book all perpetrators of violence irrespective of their nationality, NAN reports
She commended the Nigerian Mission in Johannesburg for following through with the case and other cases involving Nigerians.
Speaking in the same vein, the Consul General of Nigeria in South Africa, Mr Godwin Adama, said that he was happy that the case came to an end on Friday with judgment pronounced on the guilty police officer.
Adama disclosed that the second case of 8 policemen being tried for the murder of a Nigerian, Ibrahim Badmus, was adjourned until April 2020 for final ruling due to some technical issues.
He said the judgment of Friday has raised the spirit and morale of Nigerians in South Africa.
NAN reports that the case started since 2018 when a Nigerian, Ebuka Okoli, who was killed by a South Africa police officer and was found guilty of all the four-count charge.
There is no death sentence in South Africa laws, except life sentence or long sentence for murder
He also said more voters stayed away for fear of being caught in any violent crossfire.
However, as of the time of filing this report, there has not been any reported case of violence as the few voters on the queue were seen casting their votes without any hindrance.
