AFTER almost three months of campaigns laced with violence, mud-slinging and exchange of brick-bats among the major contenders, there is tension in Edo State as the governorship election holds tomorrow. No fewer than 35,000 security personnel, including 31,000 policemen, have been deployed to ensure safe and credible exercise.
Some stakeholders, yesterday, harped on the need for an election devoid of rigging and violence. Indeed, there was tight security around the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, Benin City, for the better part of yesterday which caused gridlock at Ring Road, the City Centre and adjoining roads, including Airport Road, Sakponba Road, Sapele Road, Akpakpava Road and others.
As the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, commenced movement of sensitive electoral materials, which arrived on Wednesday evening, a police Armoured Personnel Carrier, APC, was parked at the entrance of the Bank. Only journalists with identity cards were allowed into the premises to witness the movement of sensitive materials. At the time of filing this report, 11 trucks had been loaded and driven out of the CBN premises while the dispatching exercises continued. Of the 2,210,534 registered voters, only 1,735,910, who collected their permanent Voter’s Cards, PVCs, are eligible to vote in tomorrow’s election. Distribution of sensitive election materials
