By Rotimi Ojomoyela

The battle for the control and dominance of the grassroots and its resources has never been a tea party  among the contending political forces, as the ruling party in each state want to be in charge of the Local Government Areas.

A political dominance of the local government by the government in power at the state level guarantees unlimited access to and control of the council treasuries, hence the temptation to appoint known trusted hands to man the State Independent Electoral Committee, SIEC, which has always been the bone of contention.

Since October 2010, when the elected council chairmen and councillors in the 16 council areas of Ekiti State were kicked out of office by  former Governor Kayode Fayemi’s administration, following Oni’s removal as governor by the Appeal Court, attempts at having another set of elected officials to pilot the affairs of the Council areas have always failed.

Genesis

The last local government polls were held on December 20, 2008, during the administration of former Governor Segun Oni, then of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, but the election was boycotted by the defunct Action Congress of Nigeria, ACN, which was the main opposition party over allegation that the State Independent Electoral Commission, SIEC, led by Major-General Kayode Oni (retd) had only four members, which fell short of the minimum number of commissioners required by law, which is a minimum of five commissioners.

Also, AC argued that the constitutionally-required minimum 150 days between notice and conduct of poll was not complied with, it therefore boycotted the poll and PDP coasted home to victory, winning all the chairmanship seats in the 16 local government areas and all but one of 177 councillorship seats.

These elected council officials were however, kicked out of office by Kayode Fayemi and ever since, the councils, in the state have been headed by caretaker committees whose tenures were revalidated by the State House of Assembly every three months.

Attempts  by Fayemi in February 4, 2011, to conduct election into the 16 Local Government Areas of Ekiti was abruptly stopped by a court action on the eve of the election and the case was still pending at the appellate Court when Fayemi’s government exited power .

Common Complaints

The common complaint often raised by the opposition was the unfair composition of the state electoral umpire, which they alleged is kewed in favour of the government in power and the allegation of the PDP was a familiar one, the composition of SIEC, which was led by Mrs. Cecilia Bosede Adelusi, PDP alleged that it was made up of members of ACN/APC and loyalists of Fayemi.

Justice John Adeyeye had on February 4, 2011 delivered the verdict in a suit filed by the then opposition Peoples Democratic Party, PDP,  challenging the eligibility of the electoral body, it declared that the former EKSIEC, being sympathisers, members or apologists of the ACN could not organise, conduct nor supervise any credible election in the state.

Four years after, another attempt at having elected officials to pilot the affairs of the Local Government from December 19,  2015, is under serious threat, as the APC has gone to court to challenge the composition of the Justice Kayode Bamisile led SIEC.

The necessity for election into Council Areas

Governor Ayo Fayose, during the governorship electoral campaign never left anyone in doubt about his intention to conduct a local government election if elected as the Governor of the state.

Having secured the mandate of the people of the state, Fayose set machinery in motion for the conduct of council elections, beginning with the constitution last month of EKSIEC chaired by Justice Kayode Bamisile (retd).

The Governor at the swearing-in ceremony of Commissioners in the state, had reasoned that if elected chairmen and councillors in office, the number of people coming to Ado Ekiti, the state capital, “looking for one thing or the other” will be reduced, as the elected council officials are expected to meet some of their needs.

To demonstrate his seriousness towards conducting the election, Fayose on August 28 inaugurated SIEC, by swearing-in a new set of officials to run the agency.

Speaking on the plan of his administration to hold the election “within the shortest possible time”, Fayose challenged anybody who has anything against the newly-sworn-in SIEC chairman and commissioners to come out with any proof, saying that he would not hesitate to remove such an erring individual.

Litigations against SIEC

But just as the the electoral body was settling down to business starting with notice of election, notices of litigations began to fly in.

These include a legal suit by the opposition All Progressives Congress, APC, challenging the composition of the commission and a threat by a faction of the PDP in the state to institute legal action against the EKSIEC if the electoral body recognized candidates presented by PDP State Chairman, Chief Idowu Faleye.

With the development, fears are heightening daily, whether there is/are substance(s) in the suits which is/are capable of truncating the election and dashing again the hope of the people who are desirous of democracy at the grassroots.

The EKSIEC Chairman, Bamisile, who had given notice that the council election would hold in the 16 council areas on December 19, said at a stakeholders’ meeting with leaders of political parties, security agencies and others that all stipulations of the Ekiti State Local Government Elections Law had been complied with, in arriving at the date.

Bamisile said: “We wish to seize this opportunity to assure all registered political parties in the state that EKSIEC, as the electoral umpire, would create a level playing ground for all participants.

“We would demonstrate and manifest positive neutrality, even handedness and what America labels as bi-partisanship. I hereby wish to admonish all political parties in Ekiti State to avoid any form of violence before, during and after the conduct of the election,” he said.

While assuring that the commission will be fair to all parties in the election, Bamisile said neither he nor other members of the commission were card-carrying members or supporters of any political party as he challenged anybody who had evidence to the contrary to come forward with such.

He said the coast was clear and that the commission was ready for the December 19 election as the case in court against EKSIEC to challenge the composition of the last EKSIEC had died a natural death following the expiration of the five-year tenure of that EKSIEC.

But the APC said it had dragged Ekiti State Governor and EKSIEC to court over composition of the electoral body, alleging that members of the electoral body as constituted by the governor comprised card-carrying PDP members.

A statement by APC State Publicity Secretary, Taiwo Olatunbosun, said that while APC was ready to participate in the Local Government Elections, due process must be followed in the composition of the electoral body, saying such action was illegal and an invitation to chaos inherent in the electoral umpire providing support for a contesting party to the detriment of others.

Olatunbosun alleged that the six members of the Bamisile-led EKSIEC were PDP members and as well friends and business associates of the governor.

According to the APC spokesman, the party, in a suit filed by its counsel, Abiodun Fasakin and Tajudeen Akingbolu, is of the view that composition of the EKSIEC contradicted the constitutional requirement for a non-partisan electoral body that wanted to organise credible and acceptable elections.

The APC spokesman, in the originating summons before the State High Court, Ado-Ekiti, in which the state Attorney General and House of Assembly were joined, the defendants are to appear before the court within seven days after service of the summons on them.

Among others, the party wants the court to determine whether a member of a registered political party having interest in a pending election to local councils, is eligible to be appointed as member(s) and/or chairman of the electoral body for the purpose of conducting local councils elections in Ekiti State.

It also wants the court to determine whether the electoral body could be reconstituted in view of the pending matter involving the EKSIEC before the Supreme Court in APPEAL NO: SC.695/2013 : PDP & ANOR vs EKSIEC & 8 Ors.