The Osun State Independent Electoral Commission (OSIEC) has announced Saturday, January 27, 2018 for the conduct of election into the 68 Local Governments, Local Council Development Areas, and Administrative offices in the state. Local government election was last conducted in December 2007 during the administration of Governor Olagunsoye Oyinlola which was invalidated three years after by the Supreme Court for non -compliance with the 180 days mandatory notice.
OSIEC Chairman, Otunba Segun Oladitan announced the date at a press briefing on Wednesday at the commission headquarters in Osogbo, the State Capital after consultation with the 36 political parties that already registered with the commission to participate in the election. He said the commission has resolved all the legal impediments restraining the conduct of the election and urged the stakeholders to cooperate with the commission for the smooth conduct of the poll.
Oladitan at the press briefing said “following wide consultation and agreement with political parties, the commission hereby announced 90 days mandatory notice for the conduct of the local government election today October 18, 2017.
“With this declaration, all registered political parties, interested aspirants, security agencies and other stakeholders are hereby put on notice as required by electoral law.
The chairman explained that the commission is at the final stage of ward and local government delineations as empowered by the 2015 Local Government administration law and will make the new delineated area public after the ratification of the State House of Assembly. According to him with the creation of the new council areas, Osun East Senatorial District now has 22 council areas, 106 wards with proposed additional 13 wards making 119 wards and Osun Central has 23 council areas, 116 existing wards and additional 15 wards making 131 wards, while Osun West has 23 council areas, 110 existing wards and 18 additional wards making 118.
Oladitan said the commission is adopting the parliamentary system by conducting an election for the councillorship positions in the 378 wards and promised to be fair to all parties, adding that the commission will continue to carry along the public throughout the process.
“As I have promised earlier that the process will be all-inclusive and transparent, we still stand by our promises as you can see today, by allowing the major stakeholders who are political parties to collectively choose election date within the confine of the law and fact available; we have started well and we are so confident of the success of the process, we have nothing to hide as a commission and we seek the cooperation of the public”.
He also announced that the nomination form for the party candidates will be free, while the participating political parties will only pay administrative charges that will be bearable and reasonable. It would be recalled that the commission conducted a referendum in 2014 ratified by the state house of assembly for the completion of the creation of the new LCDA and administrative offices.
