Low turnout of voters characterised Saturday March 18, 2023 state assembly election in Imo state.
Blueprint correspondent who was on ground to cover the exercise, gathered that in all the 27 local government areas of the state the story was the same and that some factors were responsible for the development.
A retired civil servant, Obed Okwudili, blamed the low turnout on the road blocks mounted indiscriminately by security agencies in and around Owerri, the capital city of the state and other local government headquarters.
He said they couldn’t allow motorists to pass but asked them to park and continue their journey on foot.
This, he said, led to frustration and made them to go back to their various houses.
Another voter, Emeka Ndumele, said it was because only state assembly election was taking place in Imo, unlike in most states that also had governorship elections, adding that not all the Assembly candidates were known by the electorate.
“During the Presidential/National Assembly elections, there were three elections, namely, Presidency, Senate and House of Representatives and majority of the candidates were known . But today’s election is one and commands less value when compared with others,” he said.
However, a popular politician, John Agukwe, did not mince words in his assessment of the situation.
