By Giwa SHILE
Food and beverages vendors in Jos, who enjoyed mass sales during the Presidential and National Assembly elections on Feb. 23, went home disappointed on Saturday, after most voters shunned the governorship and state assembly polls.
TBI Africa said that some of them, who spoke with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), lamented their losses, saying that they did not envisage the apathy that characterised the March pollss
Mrs Rose Chunwang, a food vendor at the staff training centre, Giring polling unit No1, in Hwolshe, told NAN that the situation they met on Feb. 23 was sharply different from what they enjoyed two weeks ago.
“During the first elections, as at noon, I was already done selling all my food;the situation is different today.
“As we speak today, it is past 3 p.m. and I have barely sold up to 20 plates of food.
Chunwang said that in the Feb. 23 elections, people who cast their votes waited till the electoral officers counted them.
“That is not the case today. Most people have left. They vanished immediately after voting.”
Similarly, Grace Pam, a soft drinks vendor, who also sell local drinks, decried the poor sales on Saturday compared to what happened on Feb. 23.
The scenario was the same at polling unit 002 in Hwolshe, where most vending stands were void of customers as most of the voters disappeared after voting.
Miss Jane Gyang, a trader at polling unit 002, blamed the low patronage on the low turnout of voters and general lack of interest on the state polls.
Gyang told NAN that she had already made a mental calculation of the amount she would have made today, basing her judgement on the previous elections.
Madam Garos Dung, a vendor of various snacks in Du polling unit, said that she had only sold snacks worth N500 since morning.
“People voted and left; the turnout was low, so the waiting time was not much. The last election was a much better deal for me,” she moaned.
