Mamman Nda-Eri, the chairman of the Kogi State Independent Electoral Commission (KOSIEC), has expressed satisfaction with voter turnout in Saturday’s local government elections, describing the participation as encouraging.

Mr Nda-Eri, who spoke with journalists while monitoring the exercise in Lokoja, said that, based on the polling units visited so far, the exercise was progressing peacefully.

He said the turnout was encouraging and urged eligible voters to exercise their franchise in an orderly manner.

The chairman assured voters of the commission’s neutrality, adding that measures were in place to ensure that votes were protected, counted and duly accounted for.

He also urged politicians to accept the outcome of the election and ensure that elected representatives served the interests of the people.

Similarly, the chairman of the Ondo State Independent Electoral Commission (ODIEC), Joseph Aremo, who monitored the exercise, commended the peaceful conduct of the election and the impressive turnout recorded in the polling units visited.

Mr Aremo, who is among the members of the Forum of State Independent Electoral Commissions of Nigeria (FOSIECON), said the peer review exercise was aimed at assessing KOSIEC’s electoral processes for compliance with the Electoral Act and relevant guidelines.

He commended voter education and the deployment of security personnel, noting that no incidents of violence, vote-buying or ballot stuffing had been recorded in the areas assessed.

Some voters, including Fatima Zara and Abdullahi Ibrahim, also expressed satisfaction with the exercise, describing it as peaceful and orderly.

Ms Zara said the voting process was successful, while Ibrahim described the election as free and fair.

The Kogi local government election is being conducted across the state’s 21 local government areas to elect chairmen and councillors.

(NAN)