Anambra Assembly amends state electoral law

• ANSIEC slates council polls for sept. 28
• Five parties to contest LG elections in Kwara
• Rivers electoral body denies postponement of polls

The Anambra State government led by Charles Soludo has announced that local council elections will be conducted next month. Successive administrations in the state have not conducted the council elections over the past 10 years, including the administrations of Chris Ngige, Peter Obi, and Willie Obiano.

To realise his election promises, Soludo of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) has been putting necessary structures in place to ensure the successful conduct of the election by next month.

It is against this backdrop that the state House of Assembly amended the Anambra State Independent Electoral Commission (ANSIEC) Law.  The amendment bills were sponsored by the Majority Leader of the House, Ikenna Ofodeme (APGA), and Chukwunonso Igwe of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) representing Ekwusigo and Ogbaru 1 State Constituencies.

The amendments, which passed through the first, second, and third readings, came just as the ANSIEC announced that it would conduct council polls on September 28, 2024.

Meanwhile, a notice signed by ANSIEC Chief Electoral Officer, Genevieve Osakwe reads: “Anambra State Independent Electoral Commission wishes to inform all registered political parties and the general public that local council elections in the state will be held on Saturday, September 28, 2024.

“Election timetable/schedule of activities and other details can be collected from the Headquarters of ANSIEC, Awka, from Wednesday, August 14, 2024.”

MEANWHILE, in Kwara State, only five political parties have commenced preparation for the September 21 local council polls.  The Guardian gathered that the Kwara State Independent Electoral Commission (KWASIEC) has confirmed and released the candidates of each party for the race.

KWSIEC pasted the list of candidates for the chairmanship and councillorship positions at its office, confirming the five political parties participating in the election.

According to the list, the parties include Accord Party (AP), Allied Peoples Movement (APM), Social Democratic Party (SDP), Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the All Progressives Congress (APC.)

ALSO, the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission (RSIEC) has debunked news circulating on social media, claiming that its Chairman, Justice Adolphus Enebeli, had announced the postponement of the October 5, 2024, local council elections. The electoral commission said that the chairman never made such an announcement, describing the article as “false, baseless, and unfounded.”

In a statement, Justice Enebeli reaffirmed that the election timetable remains unchanged, and the October 5, 2024 election day is sacrosanct.