RESIDENTS DEFY MOVEMENT RESTRICTION ORDER AS FCT AREA COUNCIL POLLS BEGIN
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Several people living in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) were able to move around freely on Saturday, even though there was an order to limit movement before the area council elections.
Nyesom Wike, the minister of the FCT, had said that movement by people and vehicles would be restricted from 8pm on Friday until 6pm on Saturday.
This was done to keep things safe during the elections.
However, reports from NAN indicate that commercial buses, tricycles and motorcycles were operating in many districts without visible hindrance.
At Airport Road, Jikwoyi, Nyanya, Kuje, Gwagwalada and parts of the Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC), vehicular movement appeared largely unhindered, with no barricades mounted in many of the locations.
On the Kubwa-Nyanya expressway, however, security operatives were seen mounting roadblocks with patrol vehicles, forcing some motorists to divert or drive against traffic in an attempt to navigate around the checkpoints.
While movement was observed in several districts, many businesses remained shut. Most shops were locked, although some point-of-sale operators, laundry services and a few small-scale traders opened in parts of Airport Road.
As of 8:10am, electoral materials were being transported from the Kuje central distribution centre located at Science Primary School to various polling units within the area council.
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In Aleyita, along Airport Road, polling units at LEA Primary School were largely deserted in the early hours, with only security personnel present and officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) yet to arrive.
By 8:26am, only five voters were at the centre, two of whom were party agents.
Andrew James, one of the early voters, said he arrived at the polling unit at about 7:00 a.m., but INEC officials had yet to arrive.
For convenience, the six polling units serving the community had been collapsed into one centre at the school.
Voting had also not commenced at the polling unit in Pilot Science Primary School, Kwali, as of 8:33am, although INEC officials were seen briefing party agents on election procedures.
The FCT area council elections are being conducted across the six area councils, with security agencies deployed to maintain order amid the movement restriction directive.
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