By Oluseye Ojo
• Oyo State governor, Seyi Makinde, casting his vote at unit 1, ward 11, Ibadan North East Local Government, Abayomi Iwo-road Area, Ibadan, during the chairmanships election in all 33 LGAs in the state yesterday.
The local government election in Oyo state, held yesterday experienced a disappointing turnout of voters, despite the participation of all 19 registered political parties.
Accreditation of voters was delayed in some local government areas, including Oluyole, due to the late arrival of election materials.
To ensure a peaceful and secure process, the Commissioner of Police, Adebola Hamzat, led a combined force of security operatives and relevant stakeholders, including the Chairman of Oyo State Independent Electoral Commission (OYSIEC), Aare Isiaka Olagunju (SAN), to monitor the election in selected areas of Ibadan.
Over 12,000 security operatives were deployed across the 33 local government areas of the state.
The CP said there were no reports of electoral violence received by the officers on duty. But he acknowledged some complaints that were promptly resolved during the process.
Among those present with the Commissioner of Police were Augustine Padonu, the state Commandant of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Abdulraheem Salami, Controller of the Nigeria Correctional Service (NCoS), and Deputy Commander of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Bayode Olugbesan. The state Controller of the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) and the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) were also in attendance
Oyo State governor, ‘Seyi Makinde, commended citizens of the state for turning out to vote and rated the conduct of the election high, stating it compared favourably with elections conducted by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
The governor said these after casting his vote at Unit 1, Ward 011, Abayomi Open Space, Iwo Road, Ibadan North East LGA of Oyo State.
While addressing journalists after exercising his franchise, Governor Makinde said: “For us in Oyo State, it is almost like a given that democracy at the grassroots is what we practise. This is almost our fifth year in office and we are holding local government election for the second time.
“Before we came in, it had always been caretaker administration at the grassroots without the people having a say in who should govern them.”
The governor noted that the security report about the election had been excellent.
However, despite the efforts to ensure a smooth election, the All Progressives Congress (APC) has called for the cancellation of the local government election, labelling it a sham that could damage the reputation of the pacesetter state.
The APC, in a statement yesterday by its Publicity Secretary, Olawale Sadare, urged OYSIEC to reschedule the election for a later date when a free, fair, and credible poll could take place.
According to APC, reports from various parts of the state indicated a range of issues, including non-availability of election officials, disenfranchisement of eligible voters, shortages of voting materials, and instances of violence and threats to life.
The Oyo APC expressed disappointment in Governor Seyi Makinde, stating that he had promised that votes would count, but the opposite seemed to be the case.
The party also criticised the election as falling below the minimum global standard of conduct and accused the ruling class of insensitivity and insincerity.
The OYSIEC was accused of recruiting PDP members as ad-hoc staff and allegedly manipulated the process in favour of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
The party called for a suspension of the exercise and a new date to be set for a proper conduct of the election.
The APC also stressed specific incidents of electoral irregularities, such as the withholding of official result sheets in certain local government councils and the unleashing of political thugs on opposition members. The party cited the violent attack on the chairman of the party in Ibarapa East as evidence of the PDP’s interference.