Yiaga Africa has identified logistical shortcomings, administrative lapses and incidents of vote buying in Saturday’s Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Area Council elections, even as it described the exercise as largely peaceful.
The civic organisation made the observations in a preliminary statement issued under its Watching the Vote (WTV) initiative after deploying trained and duly accredited roving observers across the 62 wards of the FCT. The election covered six Area Council Chairmanship seats and 62 Councillorship positions.
The statement, signed by the Executive Director, Samson Itodo, and the Director of Programmes, Cynthia Mbamalu, said observers were deployed from 7:30 a.m. to monitor opening procedures, accreditation, voting and counting at polling units across the territory.
Yiaga Africa clarified that it did not deploy the Parallel Vote Tabulation (PVT) methodology for the election. As such, the statement focused strictly on process observation and did not provide an independent statistical verification of the official results. The group added that its collation observers would monitor proceedings at Ward and Area Council Collation Centres and track uploads on the INEC Results Viewing (IReV) portal.
In its general assessment, the organisation noted that the election was conducted in a largely peaceful atmosphere, with voters who turned out able to cast their ballots without widespread disruption. However, it reported generally low voter turnout across most polling units observed.
A major concern highlighted in the report was the delayed commencement of polling in several locations, particularly in the Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC). According to Yiaga Africa, as of 9:00 a.m., set-up activities were still ongoing in many polling units, indicating that preparatory procedures were not completed within the timeframe prescribed by electoral guidelines.
In Wuse and Gwarinpa wards of AMAC, observers reported that polling officials were still arranging materials and organising the voting environment well past the official opening time, with accreditation and voting in some instances beginning around 10:00 a.m.
The group also documented isolated cases involving the late arrival or absence of essential materials. While critical items such as the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) devices and voter registers were generally deployed in line with guidelines, there were exceptions. In Polling Unit 004, Wuse Ward, Zone 2 Primary School, the voter register was not initially available and was only produced after concerns were raised by observers and voters.
In Abaji Area Council, voting cubicles were not observed in some polling units, and an ink pad required for the voting process was reportedly missing in one location.
Beyond logistical issues, Yiaga Africa raised concerns over the redistribution of voters to newly created polling units without adequate notice. Although the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) reportedly sent SMS notifications to affected voters, many received the messages on Election Day, in some cases hours after polling had commenced.
This development, the group noted, generated confusion at several polling locations, with numerous voters spending considerable time attempting to confirm their designated polling units. In some cases, the situation contributed to congestion and overcrowding, undermining orderly queue management and potentially discouraging participation.
The organisation also observed disparities in voter distribution within the same polling locations, describing the imbalances as raising concerns about the coherence and reliability of the polling unit expansion and voter redistribution framework.
In addition, Yiaga Africa reported that some polling units closed before the official 2:30 p.m. deadline. It stressed that electoral guidelines require polling units to remain open until 2:30 p.m. or until the last voter on the queue has voted, regardless of turnout levels.
Security deployment was another issue flagged in the report. While acknowledging the importance of maintaining order, Yiaga Africa said heavy security presence in certain locations impeded the movement of accredited observers and, in some instances, created barriers for voters attempting to access polling units.
The group also documented incidents of vote buying at polling units, describing the practice as a persistent threat to electoral integrity. It noted that despite prior assurances and directives issued by INEC to security agencies to identify and apprehend perpetrators, the problem persisted in several locations observed.
In its preliminary recommendations, Yiaga Africa urged INEC officials to ensure that Form EC 60E, known as the People’s Results Sheet, is posted at polling units and that Form EC8A results are uploaded to the IReV portal and properly transmitted to Ward Collation Centres.
It further called on INEC to conduct the collation and declaration of results with the highest standards of integrity, transparency and professionalism, in strict adherence to legal and procedural guidelines.
The organisation advised security agencies to maintain professionalism and impartiality, especially at collation centres, and urged political parties, candidates and supporters to refrain from actions capable of undermining the credibility of the process.
Reaffirming its commitment to credible elections, Yiaga Africa said it would continue to observe the collation process and provide updates on the integrity of results management, while calling on all stakeholders to ensure a peaceful and conclusive electoral outcome in the FCT.
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