Chairman of the Osun State Independent Electoral Commission (OSIEC) Segun Oladitan has insisted that the commission will go ahead with the Local Government elections in the state, scheduled for January 27, 2018.
This comes despite an injunction served to the commission by the Federal High Court in Abuja to prevent it from going ahead with the elections.
Mr Oladitan said that the commission will not subject itself to the injunction, explaining that “issues concerning Local Government elections are for the State High Court and not the Federal High Court”.
“They purportedly served us at the Osun Liaison office in Abuja. If they obtained leave to serve outside the jurisdiction and they serve within the jurisdiction, it is contradictory.
“The Attorney General informed me that there is an injunction served against us and I said I shall not subject myself to the Jurisdiction of that court because ordinarily, issues concerning local government elections are for the State High Court, not for the Federal High Court.
“We are not to be served outside the jurisdiction,” he stressed.
He made this known when he appeared as a guest on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Monday.
Reacting to alleged plans by the opposition to boycott the process, Mr Oladitan said: “I as an umpire, I should only be concerned with the election that I am going to conduct.
“If there were 1000 political parties, registered with INEC that are participating, I am happy about it. If there are only three, I am still happy with it. The moment you get concerned, you are getting biased.”
Amidst the litigations hanging over the commission and allegations of the state running a parliamentary system of government, many are eager to see how the process turns out – being the first Local Government election to be held in the state in 11 years.
The post OSIEC Chairman Insists On Conducting LG Elections appeared first on Channels Television.
OSIEC Chairman Insists On Conducting LG Elections
