By Sakeenah Abdullateef
The Ondo State Independent Electoral Commission (ODIEC) on Tuesday, has announced the indefinite postponement of the local government election, scheduled for July 13.
Joseph Aremo, ODIEC Chairperson, expressed disappointment at the political parties’ failure to submit nomination forms.
“Ours is to conduct election that will usher in a democratic government at the local level,” he said.
“It’s unfortunate that no single party complied with the guidelines for the election. We are yet to receive the nomination of candidates, yet to verify and release it to the public for scrutiny,” Aremo added.
The commission will go back to the drawing board and make its position known later.
Adesanya Olaoluwa, Chairperson of the Ondo State Inter-Party Advisory Council (IPAC), revealed that political parties agreed not to participate until a meeting is held with the governor to address local government administration issues.
“They now know our reasons. We want to see Mr Governor. It is not that we don’t have trust in ODIEC. We know they can conduct a credible election, but we want to see Mr Governor,” Olaoluwa said.
The political parties’ decision is linked to unresolved issues surrounding the sacking of local government caretaker committees and litigation contesting the appointment of caretaker committees by the previous administration.
The court had granted parties to the suit to seek an out-of-court settlement, but conclusions are yet to be reached. The court also voided the creation of the 33 LCDAs created by the late Governor Akeredolu, which the state government is yet to appeal.
The local government election is now in limbo, with no clear date for its conduct.
