Some town criers took to the streets to urge voters to come out and cast their votes for the ongoing bye-election in Lagos State.
Surulere 1 Federal Constituency of Lagos State witnessed a low-key but spirited campaign for the by-election on Saturday, as some communities resorted to using town criers to urge voters to come out and cast their ballots.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) correspondents who covered the election reported that they saw town criers in various places, using bells or iron plates to make noise and attract the attention of the residents.
They were heard shouting on the streets, telling people to come out and vote for their preferred candidates and parties, and not to be indifferent to the electoral process.
One of the town criers, Mr Ahmed Dauda, a civil servant who lives on Mercy Eneli Street, said he decided to do this because he wanted people to participate in the election and have a say in the issues that affect them.
He told NAN: “We have to come out and ring bells for people to come out and vote. People should not show apathy to election. It is our right to choose our leaders. We are still telling people to come out and participate.”
He also praised the Chief of Staff to Bola Tinubu, Mr Femi Gbajabiamila, who resigned from the seat to take up his new appointment, saying he had done a lot of good things for Surulere.
He said: “He has positively affected a lot of lives in Surulere. We should not make any mistake of voting the wrong candidate.”
Another town crier, Mrs Nofisat Yusuf, a fashion designer who used an iron plate to make noise at the Akerele Extension, said she wanted people to take the election seriously and not to ignore it.
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She said: “We are doing this so that people will come out and vote the candidate of their choice in any political party of their choice. People must come out from all areas including Akerele Extension, Rabiatu Thompson, Alapa Fuja, Bank Olemin, Olawale Daudu, Randle Junction and others.”
Meanwhile, NAN observed that there was a heavy presence of security personnel in and around Surulere, as the Nigeria Police, Nigeria Security and Civil Defense Corps, and Nigeria Army set up road blocks and patrolled the streets and roads with patrol vans and armoured carriers.
The security agents were seen checking vehicles and pedestrians, and ensuring that there was no breach of peace or violence during the election.
The by-election was contested by 12 candidates from different political parties, who were vying for the 121,111 votes of registered voters with Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) in the constituency.
The seat became vacant following the resignation of Mr Gbajabiamila, who was appointed by Tinubu as his Chief of Staff after winning the 2023 general election.