The Peoples Democratic Party, Osun State Chapter have asked them to stop the Local Government Election being planned by the state government because the election conflicts completely with provisions of the law and the Electoral Act 2022.
Dr Akindele Adekunle, the
Chairman made the statement on Tuesday,16th August 2022, during a press conference at the party secretariat. He said that the immediate denial by the OSIEC chairman, Otunba Olusegun Oladuntan when the party raised an alarm two weeks ago, was not sincere.
He alleged Oladuntan of working on the governor’s stern order to cause the election to hold by all means, not minding its impropriety in the face of the law.
“The reason behind such blind rush for an election the same Apc government had refused to hold since advent of Oyetola’s administration is not far fetched”, he indicated.
Akindele further said “The defeated government had soiled it hands in so much financial infractions and monumental corruption, especially towards the last election and therefore, is desperately looking for all corrupt means to cover it’s loophole.
According to him, the Local Government Election announced by the Osun State Independent Electoral Commission, OSIEC, is illegal and it contravens the dictate of the 2022 Electoral Acts passed by the National Assembly and assented to by President Muhammadu Buhari.
He advised the Osun State Independent Electoral Commission (OSIEC) not to allow itself to be used as a tool for illegality.
“The planned election , we want to maintain, is a futile effort that will certainly not stand and and as we’ve mentioned severally, it is an attempt to plung the state further into financial abjection and misery”, he declared.
He said: “the defeated Governor about pendency of litigations before the High Court of Osun State and the Federal High Court, Osogbo, in which the legitimacy of the Commission as presently constituted, the constitutionality and legality of the planned Local Government election amongst others are being challenged”.
He,however, asserted that the “Section 28 of the Electoral Act, 2022, stipulates that no election can hold until a notice of 360 days is given to all relevant stakeholders before the such election. The Electoral Act also provides without any room for Mr Oyetola’s kind of dilly dally, in section 29, a period of 180 days within which list of candidates must be published”.
“OSIEC is further reminded today that the Electoral Act in sub-paragraph 4 of section 150 makes it a criminal offence for any official of the state electoral body to breach the provision, as such deliberate offender is liable to be prosecuted. The eagerness to waste state resources on this fruitless venture again makes it more criminal for members of OSIEC”.
The party has called on the IGP Alkali Baba Usman and the state Commissioner of Police, Olawale Olokode to take proactive steps to nip in the bud.
Speaking at the conference ,Insight Media reported that a member of Civil Society Organisations in Osun State, Mr Rauf Elebute, said ” the purported LGA election is a way for the sitting government to siphon funds, and advised the incumbent Governor to not do anything illegal .
