A group, YIAGA Africa has listed arms stockpiling, influx of thugs as some of the early warning signs of trouble ahead of Saturday’s governorship election in Bayelsa State. These, it said, may extensively mar the election.
New Telegraph reports that the group which made their fears known Thursday in Yenagoa, the state capital, during a media parley, reeled out their findings so far ahead of the election.
The representative of the NGO, Cynthia Mbamalu said that earlier the group had deployed about 520 observers to the eight local government areas of the state for the purpose of monitoring the election.
YIAGA Africa said that it was therefore foreseeing the outbreak of violence in Yenagoa and Sagbama council areas because of the recruitment of thugs.
The group noted that their fears have already began to play out since Wednesday at Nembe Local Government where many were feared dead, including a media worker, after a clash by supporters of the two main parties, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and All Progressives Congress (APC) at a rally.
Mbamalu also said that the observers noticed physical and verbal violence in Southern Ijaw, Yenagoa, Brass, Nembe, and Sagbama local government areas warning that those were signs of things to come on Saturday if the security agencies did not live up to the professional responsibilities.
