State assembly elections marred by low turnout

Elections for Nigeria's 36 state legislatures were marred by low turnout and widespread voter apathy, but early results on Monday showed the ruling party of President Olusegun Abasanjo with a massive lead over its rivals. Official results showed Obasanjo's People's Democratic Party had won a majority of the vote in 17 of 24 states declared so far. The main opposition All Nigeria People's Party won six states in Saturday's poll. However, the smaller Alliance for Democracy clinched a majority in Lagos State. No figures were available for voter turnout, but party officials and members of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), said it was well down on the 63% registered Nigeria's the April 19 presidential poll, which saw Obasanjo re-elected for a second four-year term. Isolated incidents of ballot-box snatching by armed men and violent confrontations between rival party supporters were reported. In the southern oil city of Warri, two days of gun battles between naval troops and ethnic Ijaw militants kept most voters at home. Local media said 12 Ijaw youths and two navy men died in the clashes. The Ijaw militants had demanded a boycott of the polls, alleging that voting boundaries favoured the rival Itsekiri tribe. INEC however, expressed satisfaction with the conduct of the vote, the last in a series of ballots that concluded Nigeria's first civilian-to-civilian transition in 20 years. Abel Guobadia, INEC chairman, said that the state assemly elections were markedly different from previous polls for the presidency, state governors and national parliament in April because there were no strong campaigns by candidates. "I don't think many of the candidates asked the electorate to come out, and the electorate had no business coming out," he said. In southeastern Anambra State, the Justice Peace and Development Commission, said armed men snatched ballot boxes from several polling stations. Martins Onukwuba, a member of the group, said some organisational lapses that gave rise to irregularities in previous ballots - such as electoral officials turning up without results sheets - were evident on Saturday. "There is no improvement at all," Onukwuba said. Some people said they were tired of voting after three previous ballots, while others said they had lost faith in the process due to suspicions of widespread rigging. "I don't believe the will of the people was reflected in some of the previous votings, so I saw no point in wasting my time voting this time around," Johnson Eze, a trader in southeast Imo State, told IRIN. Local and international observers said the preceding elections were marred by massive fraud, including the stuffing of ballot boxes, the alteration of results and voter intimidation by people close to the government and the ruling party. Obasanjo's People's Democratic Party controlled 21 of the 36 state legislatures before the latest elections, during which it has gained ground. The ruling party clinched 28 state governorships in April.