INEC Not Ready for Credible Polls in Edo, Ondo — Osun NNPP Chairman
The New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP) on Tuesday disclosed that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) is not ready to conduct free and fair elections in the forthcoming governorship poll in Edo and Ondo States.
The Osun State Chairman of the party, Dr. Oluwatosin Odeyemi at a press conference at GMT Event Centre in Osogbo said the electoral umpire’s threat to discontinue election process if political parties cannot guarantee peace showed the lack of seriousness of the body.
Rather than embark on threatening to boycott the process, Odeyemi said INEC ought to have reached out to the Federal Government, which controls security apparatus in the country to ensure a peaceful atmosphere before, during, and after the electoral process in the two states.
“Every indication on the ground is a pointer to the fact that the election umpire in our land, INEC is not ready for free and fair elections in Edo and Ondo states.
“INEC is threatening to discontinue the election process unless all parties are able to guarantee peace, I wish to ask, whose duty is to ensure peace? Who controls the Army, Police, and other security apparatus in Nigeria? The answers to all these, you will agree with me, is Federal Government and which party controls the federal government? APC.
“INEC should have simply begged the Federal Government to ensure peace before, during and after the elections, rather than pushing its responsibilities to the doorstep of political parties”, he said.
Odeyemi further berated the FG for allegedly pauperizing Nigerians to make them vulnerable to selling their votes during elections for peanuts instead of performing their civic responsibility with patriotism. Speaking on political development in Osun, he urged the State Governor, Adegboyega Oyetola to prepare to handover to the party, as it will offer Osun residents the best they would not resist.
Odeyemi added that the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state and the major opposition party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) have failed the teeming populace in the state, hence, the NNPP was out to provide a credible alternative to take rescue the people from the slavery of the two parties.
He said, “As a credible alternative that we are, our doors are open to well-meaning people that are consistent and resolute with a good ideology to genuinely combat corruption and work as a team to bring Osun State out of the humongous depth and maladministration it has been plunged over the past years by the two major parties.
This party will focus so much on youth and women to implement our vision.
“We are also using this opportunity to inform Governor Gboyega Oyetola of Osun State to be ready to hand over power to NNPP, while the PDP should not bother to field a candidate for the 2022 governorship election because we are offering the best package that we know Osun people will accept”, he added.
Ayooluwa Joshua