Uncertainty over Edo governorship election despite INEC’s pledge

At what point would the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) adjust its timetable for the September 19, 2020 gubernatorial election in Edo State? Apart from general apprehension that violence and voter apathy could mar the election, Nigerians were taken aback when Governor Godwin Obaseki sounded the alarm that the All Progressives Congress (APC), which is in opposition in Edo State, was experimenting with all manners of tricks to compel a postponement through INEC.
 
This is just as two heavy weights in the APC, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu and incumbent governor of Ondo State, Oluwarotimi Akeredolu, who is seeking a second term mandate in the November 10, 2020 governorship poll in the Sunshine State, have settled their differences to ensure that the party retains control of the state.

Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!

At what point would the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) adjust its timetable for the September 19, 2020 gubernatorial election in Edo State? Apart from general apprehension that violence and voter apathy could mar the election, Nigerians were taken aback when Governor Godwin Obaseki sounded the alarm that the All Progressives Congress (APC), which is in opposition in Edo State, was experimenting with all manners of tricks to compel a postponement through INEC.

This is just as two heavy weights in the APC, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu and incumbent governor of Ondo State, Oluwarotimi Akeredolu, who is seeking a second term mandate in the November 10, 2020 governorship poll in the Sunshine State, have settled their differences to ensure that the party retains control of the state.

It would be recalled that midway into the election that brought him to power in 2016, INEC was forced to postpone the governorship election in Edo State citing security issues and threat to peaceful conduct of the poll.

That could explain why, while speaking to journalists on the general overview of the election environment in the state, Obaseki alleged the APC was instigating fear in the minds of the voters so as to prevent them from taking part in the civic exercise.

The governor, who is the standard bearer of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), also claimed that the opposition was behind the incidences of violence during the electioneering, explaining that the overall aim is to “create the impression that Edo State is not safe, such that the Federal Government could declare a state-of-emergency and postpone the election.”

While appealing to the opposition to give peace a chance, the governor asserted: “When they come out, they behave so lawlessly as if there is no law. The opposition party today understands how difficult it is for them to win election. Rather than trying to persuade people, they engage in all kinds of vicious propaganda.

“They want to cause violence and anarchy so that the election will be postponed. We appeal to opposition party to allow peace reign in the land. We are in government. If they want to come in, they should do what the people want.

“We will continue to appeal to the Federal Government, we do not have the police and army.”

President Muhammadu Buhari had, in an interaction with stakeholders and leaders of Northeast geopolitical zone, explained that as the party in power, APC could have used the military and police to run over the strongholds of the opposition and win the votes in 2019.

He said his party could not do that despite the fact that he was a candidate in the election simply because there is need to show humane leadership, assuring that the governing party would continue to uphold fairness and justice in electoral competitions.

Fresh Anxieties
However, despite President Buhari’s assurance of a level play field, new threats to the faithful observance of the INEC timetable emerged when the Court of Appeal in Abuja ruled that the electoral umpire displayed rascality in deregistering some political parties in the country.

A panel of four justices led by the President of the Court of Appeal (PCA), Justice Monica Dongban-Mensem, while upturning earlier ruling of the Federal High Court, held that INEC’s failure to adduce reasons for deregistering the parties rendered its action defective and therefore to no effect.
 
Dissatisfied with the Federal High Court ruling, which dismissed their suit No FHC/CS/444/2019 against INEC for deregistering them, the fringe political parties had approached the Court of Appeal to determine whether INEC had power to deregister 74 out of 91 registered parties in the country.
 
INEC had in February 2020, while deregistering the 74 parties based its action on the fact that the affected parties “failed to meet the criteria provided by Section 225(a) of Nigeria’s 1999 Constitution as amended.”
 
But despite the Court of Appeal ruling that favoured the appellants, INEC explained that they would not participate in the Edo and Ondo states’ governorship polls.

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here