Some voters were left distraught after political thugs disrupted the electoral exercise at a polling unit on Ago Palace Way, Lagos State for the governorship and state house of assembly elections on Saturday.
“We came to cast our votes as good citizens,” one voter told Channels Television, speaking on behalf of 150-200 other eligible voters at the polling unit – some of whom she said had travelled to the country specifically for the exercise.
The unidentified woman added, “But then, we had thugs come in here with bottles, canes; they were chasing people away.
“They kept on saying things like, ‘If you’re not voting APC, get out of here. We’re going to kill you. We’re going to beat you.’ They started scattering everything. They were threatening people.
“They were breaking glasses, throwing stones, causing a mess. People started running from place to place because they were cared for their lives. You want to say you want to die for your country; is Nigeria even worth dying for?”
According to her, the security personnel assigned to the polling station to protect voters and electoral officers “were not of much help”.
She said the police went away with the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) officers on duty “and also with our BVAS”.
Pointing to scores of ballots dumped into puddles in the street, she said the votes of the affected Nigerians are “not going to count” because “our votes here are invalid”.