Osun Local Govt. Election Holds Amidst Litigations, Uncertainty

 

Ismaeel Uthman

THE Osun State Independent Electoral Commission (OSIEC) will tomorrow conduct the local government council election as scheduled.

The election is coming amidst controversies, criticism, litigations and uncertainties 42 days to the expiration of the administration of Governor Adegboyega Oyetola.

OSIEC will today deploy sensitive materials to all the local governments, Local Council Development Areas and Area Councils in final preparation for the poll. 

However, OSUN DEFENDER noted that none of the political parties purportedly participating in the election campaigned since the electoral body released guidelines for the election.

Sixteen political parties were said to be participating in the election. 

There are no indications that an election is taking place in any part of the state, as there are no posters, billboards, handbills or  other campaign materials. 

The All Progressives Congress (APC) which is the only major party in the election and its candidates across the local governments, LCDAs and Area Councils did not also campaign, nor canvass for votes in their various areas, findings revealed.

APC officially flagged off campaign on Tuesday with presentation of the party’s flag to candidates in the election. 

But no campaign was held after that in any part of the state, investigations have revealed. 

OSUN DEFENDER observed that the candidates of the APC are assured of victory in what some political analysts have described a one-party election. 

But there is uncertainty on the fate of the winners of the election who might have been sworn-in before the inauguration of the Governor-elect, Senator Ademola Adeleke. 

There is the general impression that the elected local government officials will spend just 40 days before they are sacked by the new government.

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) had declared that all “illegally elected officials” will be dissolved after November 27.

According to the party in a statement signed by its Chairman, Dr Akindele Adekunle, the election is a waste of scarce resources, saying it will never support illegality. 

The statement reads in part: “In furtherance of our earlier warnings, anyone who emerged from the illegal election will be dissolved after November 27.”

“The reason for this is simply because our party will never condone any act of illegality, which is the clear reflection of the planned exercise.”

Adekunle who said his party is not averse to having elected officials at the local government, however, said: “The position of our party remains that laws should be a guiding principle, and not the shenanigan we have seen so far.

“It is on this note that we want to call on Osun people to stay away from this illegality by not participating in the exercise. The implication of joining APC in its voyage of illegality is a costly one, especially for our struggling state, which has tones of obligations unmet, particularly pension arrears.”

Reacting to the PDP, the Special Adviser to the Governor on Political Matters, Chief Sunday Akere, said no governor has power to dissolve any democratically elected structure, saying the government and APC were not bothered about PDP’s threats. 

Akere, in a telephone interview with OSUN DEFENDER yesterday, said the local government election is in line with provisions of relevant laws, dismissing the PDP’s claim that the election is illegal. 

He said: “The constitution and the Electoral Act are clear; no governor has constitutional right to dissolve any democratically elected structure. Even when such will happen, I believe they will have to follow rules and procedure. Nobody is afraid of them (PDP). 

“We are set to go ahead with our election. We are not bothered with anybody’s distraction. We are going ahead with the election on Saturday. We are going to elect democratic structures in all 293 wards and 59 LCDAs and Area Councils.”

On the legality of the election, Akere said: “why will the election be illegal? Is there no law guiding the conduct of the election? The constitution of Nigeria is clear; that it is the State Assembly that will promulgate law that will guide the conduct of local government election. It is the law that was passed by the Osun State House of Assembly that the OSIEC is making use for the election. 

“There is nothing illegal about it and the PDP are not in position to tell us if anything is illegal or not. We are working according to the law of the land and law guiding the local government as passed and promulgated by the State Assembly.

Asked why there was no campaign in any local government for the election, Akere said: “The leadership of the party flagged off the campaign on Tuesday. By the guidelines of OSIEC, they have seven days to post the names of people contesting which have been done over the weekend, and the leadership of the party flagged off campaign on Tuesday at the State Secretariat where everybody was present. 

“All the 59 council chairmen candidates were officially given the party’s flag to go and commence campaign in their various local governments.”

Two different suits filed against OSIEC and independent National Electoral Commission by the PDP and Action Peoples Party (APP) on the conduct of the election are currently pending at a Federal High Court, Osogbo.

The APP suit comes up today at the court.