Osun Council Poll: Today, Tomorrow Declared Work-free Days

The Osun State Independent Electoral Commission (OSIEC) has said 318 councillorship candidates were presented unopposed by their parties to participate in Saturday’s local government election.

Also, the state government has declared today and tomorrow work-free days, ahead of Saturday’s poll.

According to the commission, the election will hold in 71 of the 389 wards in the state.

OSIEC Chairman Segun Oladitan, who addressed reporters yesterday in Osogbo, the state capital, said 12 parties withdrew their participation from the election.

He said only six parties would participate in the poll.

The OSIEC chief also said the election would hold in six wards of the Central, 13 wards in the West and 52 wards in the East senatorial districts.

Oladitan said: “For the purpose of this election, which is based on the parliamentary system of government, 38 parties registered at the initial stage out of which only 18 signified their intention to participate. I can reliably tell you that 12 political parties have withdrawn from participating in the election, remaining only six political parties in the race.

“Of all the candidates representing the participating political parties in the 389 wards across the state, 318 councillorship candidates in 318 wards have been presented unopposed. They represent the candidates who satisfied the requirements of the law with reference to Section 41 of the Electoral Act (2011), as amended.

“Therefore, there shall be elections in only 71 wards of the state.”

The OSIEC chairman, who spoke about the injunction against the commission, said the State High Court, sitting in Ilesha on Tuesday, dismissed an application restraining the commission.

He said a Federal High Court in Abuja, also on Wednesday, dismissed the ex parte motion seeking to restrain the commission from conducting the Saturday local government election.

Oladitan assured all of a free and fair poll, saying there would be vehicular restriction from 7 a.m to 2 p.m.

Also, a statement yesterday by the Special Adviser to the Governor on Media and Publicity, Mr. Sola Fasure, said the Federal High Court, sitting in Abuja, had vacated its 2017 order restraining the commission from holding elections into the Local Council Development Authorities (LCDAs) and withholding local government allocations in the state.

Governor Rauf Aregbesola urged Osun eligible voters to come out en masse to perform their civic responsibility in the local government parliamentary election without let or hindrances.