Bayelsa guber poll: We were assaulted by some youths in Yenagoa LGA, says presiding officer

The presiding officer (PO) of a polling unit (PU) in Yenagoa LGA says he and other election officials were assaulted for arriving late at their duty posts for the governorship election in Bayelsa state on Saturday.

According to the PO who pleaded not to be named for security reasons, some youths in the area harassed and physically assaulted him and his colleagues when they reported at the polling unit.

The PO, a National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) member, said it took the intervention of security agencies to restore normalcy to the voting centres.

He said their late arrival at the unit was based on the safety concerns they had about the Yenagoa LGA.

“The situation escalated when voting finally commenced around noon, as some voters demanded ballot papers without accreditation, causing a dispute that resulted in the destruction of ballot papers,” he said.

“It was the intervention of Department of State Services (DSS) operatives, that managed to de-escalate the tension and ensure the election continued.”

He noted that despite the challenges, over 200 people cast their votes before the ballot closed at 3:30 p.m.

CellHub, an election management team and civil society organisation (CSO), had pointed out Yenagoa, the capital of Bayelsa, as a flashpoint.

The CSO also identified Brass, Nembe, and Ogbia LGAs as violent-prone areas, and advised that there should be heightened vigilance and “strategic” deployment of security personnel in these areas.