Controversy erupts as IPAC condemns Senate's LG Electoral bill

• The Inter-Party Advisory Council (IPAC) has criticized the proposed bill to establish a Local Government Electoral Commission
• The Senate's introduction of this bill aims to create a separate electoral body for local government elections
• IPAC's National Publicity Secretary, Chinyere Oge-Kalu, stated that the proposed commission would duplicate functions and waste public funds

The Inter-Party Advisory Council (IPAC) has criticized the proposed bill to establish a Local Government Electoral Commission, labelling it as "flawed" and "wasteful."

The Senate's introduction of this bill aims to create a separate electoral body for local government elections.

Senate slammed over LG Electoral Commission bill Photo credit: Naija_PR
Source: Facebook

However, IPAC is calling on lawmakers to reconsider the proposal.

Move by Senate to create LG commission unnecessary, says IPAC

In a statement on Friday, July 19, IPAC's National Publicity Secretary, Chinyere Oge-Kalu, stated that Senate's proposed commission would lead to duplicated functions and unnecessary public expenditure, as reported by Punch reported.

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She said:

"IPAC strongly condemns the proposed bill by the Senate to create the Local Government Independent Electoral Commission sponsored by Sen. Sani Musa."This move is unacceptable and unnecessary, as it will lead to duplication of functions and waste of public funds."Creating another commission will not address the challenges faced in conducting local government elections. Instead, it will lead to unnecessary duplication of efforts and resources."The proposed commission will still rely on INEC's voter register, IREV, BVAS, ballot boxes, and other resources to conduct a successful election."

FG urged to strengthen INEC

Oge-Kalu emphasized that the current Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) should be strengthened to conduct free, fair, and transparent elections at the local government level, TheCable reported.

She said:

"Rather than creating another commission, we should focus on building the capacity of INEC to conduct free, fair, and transparent elections at the local level."This is especially crucial at a time when the government is grappling with limited resources to cater to the welfare of citizens."We urge the Senate to reconsider this proposed bill and prioritize the strengthening of INEC to deliver credible elections at all levels."

Atiku criticizes Senate over sack of Ndume

In another development, Legit.ng reported that Atiku Abubakar, the flagbearer of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2023 presidential election, has described the National Assembly, particularly the Senate, as an enabler of executive recklessness of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu-led executive.

This came after Ndume claimed Tinubu had been caged and unaware of the hardship and hunger in the country, a remark condemned by some lawmakers.

Atiku said Ndume’s case and similar punishment meted on Senator Ningi for similar actions earlier in the year only point to the fact that “concerns of the people stand in the nadir of the priority list of the legislature.”

Source: Legit.ng