Pandemonium, on Saturday, broke out at Elekahia Primary School in Port Harcourt City Local Government Area as armed men dressed in police uniform stormed the polling station, firing teargas and seizing election materials.
Reports said the gunmen, who were masked, arrived in Hilux Patrol Vans, chased RSIEC officials, and carted away vital election materials.
Residents and voters scampered to safety, rushing into nearby streets, as the patrol vans sped away with stolen materials. The incident caused tension in the area.
The State Police Command’s spokesperson, ASP Grace Iringe-Koko, said they are not aware of the incident.
However, some of the voters who spoke with journalists said the voting process was already over and counting concluded, before the disruption.
Explosion had earlier rocked the secretariat of the State’s All Progressives Congress (APC) led by Tony Okocha.
The gate of the secretariat and the doors were shattered by the explosion, which happened around 3:20am.
The police command has said they are investigating 2 explosions that rocked the city of Port Harcourt in the early hours of Saturday.
ASP Iringe-Koko said the police acknowledged the explosion at the APC secretariat and another one at Rumuodumaya, the council headquarters of Obio/Akpor.
She added that the Command’s Explosive Ordinance Department has collected samples from both sites and is actively investigating the situation.
Despite the controversies surrounding the council polls, including court orders directing the police not to participate, the election went ahead on Saturday.
Prior to Saturday, police authorities in the State had said they will not provide security for the exercise, citing the court order barring them.
The Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission (RSIEC), however, was not deterred by the non-participation of the police in the poll.
The RSIEC said late Friday that the election would go on as scheduled.
“For the avoidance of doubt, we emphasize unequivocally that the 5th October 2024 Local Government Council Elections in Rivers State will hold as scheduled, and there is no going back,” RSIEC announced through a statement