Politics of Friday, 7 December 2012
Source: GNA
Voting has taken off in the Tamale metropolis with huge crowds queuing in most of the polling stations that the GNA visited.
However, voting did not start at 0700 hours as scheduled despite the early arrival of voters.
At the SDA Primary polling station in the Tamale North Constituency, voting started at 0718 hours, the Presiding Officer, Madam Veronica Quaye explained that all materials were set before the official time of voting but had to delay because of the late coming of some of the polling agents.
At the Word Miracle Church Fuo polling station, as at 0700 hours the Presiding Officer, Mr. Noah Kofi told the GNA that the Electoral Commission delayed in bringing the materials to the polling station leaving many of the voters who had come as early as 0200 hours stranded.
At the Temporary Booth-Under-Mango Tree polling station in the Tamale North Constituency, voters were disappointed with the EC because as at 0810 hours, electoral materials were not available when the GNA visited the area.
In the Tamale Central Constituency, voting started at 0815 hours, with an eighty-year-old man, Razak Bedu being the first to cast his vote since he was the first in the queue.
Dassah Henry, the Presiding Officer explained that materials did not come early. Also at the Tolon Constituency in Tolon District, five persons had cast their votes as at 0720 hours in the SARI Polling Station A, while 19 voted in the polling B of SARI as at 0725 hours. At the Market Store Polling Station, 34 had cast their votes out of a total of 557 in the voter’s registers list.
Voting went on smoothly without any hitches when the GNA visited some of the polling stations in Tolon.
Meanwhile, the GNA observed that most of the voters came to the polling stations very early to cast their votes.
Mr. Francis Chumasi said he arrived at the Estate Polling station at 12:00 midnight waiting to cast his vote while Abudulai Salifu got to his voting place 0300 hours at the SDA Primary.
Generally, elections were ongoing peacefully with voters comporting themselves in long queers, except for the late start in some areas due to the late arrival of voting materials or electoral staff.