Nigerian Senate moves to establish Local Government Electoral Commission
By KEMI KASUMU
A Bill seeking to establish a Federal agency for the conduct of local government elections on Thursday July18, scaled first reading in the Senate.
This was coming barely 48 hours after Abanikanda Olumoro, United Kingdom-based editorial contributor, countered a former Ekiti State Governor, Ayodele Fayose, over his comment that nobody could become Chairman Local Government without the Governor.
Fayose had said that, “I am not a lawyer. I am a politician and by God’s grace today, I am an elder statesman,” Fayose said, adding that, “While I love and do not believe that any government should take local government fund, may I say to you very clearly this evening that you cannot take the baby from the mother. There is nobody that can become council chairman without a governor. Anybody telling you otherwise is wasting his time.”
But Abanikanda Olumoro replied the former governor, saying “you are wrong” and provided the way out that “we need something new. It is part of federalism. The governor does not need to conduct election for Local Governments.”
He said, “Nonsense. If you rig this time, you will be consumed by it. The candidates will defend their votes. Every candidate with their supporters will apply the Kano voters protection model. No more jibiti!”
At the Senate in Abuja on Thursday, a bill to the effect of addressing implementation of local government authonomy with regard to election conduct suffaced titled, “Local Government Independent Electoral Commission (Establishment) Bill, 2024 (SB. 531).”
The bill, which has not passed for second reading, was sponsored by the Chairman, Senate Committee on Finance, Senator Sani Musa, ( APC, Niger East).
