Ondo electoral body postpones council poll indefinitely

The Ondo State Independent Electoral Commission, ODIEC, disclosed on Monday that the local government election scheduled to take place this year has been postponed indefinitely.

While disclosing the development at the commission’s headquarters in Akure, the state capital, the Chairman of ODIEC, Dr Joseph Aremo, revealed that the decision to postpone the election was due to the noncompliance of political parties with the Electoral Act.

The election, which was earlier slated for February 2024, was postponed following the passing of the late former Governor Oluwarotimi Akeredolu.

The tenure of the council chairmen expired in August 2023, with caretaker committees appointed to run the affairs of the councils. But their appointment was short-lived, as Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa suspended them following a court case challenging their inauguration, after which directors of Local Government Administration, were directed to take charge of the affairs of their respective councils.

The ODIEC chairman, who stated that no political party submitted any candidate’s name, frowned over the action of the Inter Party Advisory Council, IPAC, in the state as sabotage.

The chairman of IPAC in the state, Olaoluwa Adesanya, who revealed that registered political parties deliberately boycotted the electoral process, alleged Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa had refused to meet with the IPAC leadership.

Adesanya maintained that the governor had refused to meet with IPAC despite several letters written to him.

He emphasised that political parties would not participate in the conduct of the election until after meeting the governor in order to ascertain the preparedness of the state government to conduct the council poll.