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Ondo State heads to the polls on Saturday to elect local government officials, following the last exercise held on August 23, 2020. PETER DADA writes on the expectations of the people, the preparations of the electoral body, and the last-minute withdrawal by the main opposition, the Peoples Democratic Party
On Saturday, January 18, 2025, Ondo State will experience another historic day as the local government election is held across the 18 local government areas to elect chairmen and councillors.
The election comes barely three months after the governorship election held on November 16, 2024. Before the scheduled poll, the last council election was conducted on August 23, 2020. The tenure of the elected council officials lapsed on August 22, 2023. Since then, the administration of the 18 council areas of the state has been managed by civil servants, specifically the Head of Local Government Administration.
Many expected the election to be held immediately after the expiration of the last executive in August, but due to various political issues plaguing the administration of the late Governor Rotimi Akeredolu, the election could not be held. Even when the incumbent governor, Mr Lucky Aiyedatiwa, got to power, the election was postponed four times before the Ondo State Independent Electoral Commission finally fixed January 18 as election day.
According to the commission, no fewer than 13 political parties were screened and cleared for the poll, implying that 13 parties would be participating in the election.
In the list released by the ODIEC, Action Democratic Party, Action People’s Party, All Progressives Congress, All Progressives Grand Alliance, Boot Party, Labour Party, New Nigeria and the New Nigeria People Party were cleared for the election.
Others were the Peoples Democratic Party, Social Democratic Party, Young Progressive Party, Zenith Labour Party, Action Alliance and National Rescue Movement.
The state electoral commission expressed its commitment to conduct a free, fair and credible poll on Saturday, as it said it had accredited 50 local and international observers for the election, while all the electoral materials, both sensitive and non-sensitive, were readily available.
Speaking on the preparation for the election, the ODIEC Chairman, Dr Joseph Aremo, noted that the commission had successfully recruited and trained ad hoc staff who will conduct the election. He said he had also met with stakeholders who are key to the success of the election.
The chairman hinted that non-sensitive election materials required for the election had been distributed to the ODIEC offices in the 18 local government areas of the state, reiterating that the electoral body was working with relevant security agencies to ensure the safety of the election materials.
However, unlike the November 16, 2024, governorship election, the political atmosphere in the state has not indicated an election season, as all the participating political parties appear to be quiet. There has been no open campaign, though it was learnt that the election concerns the grassroots. As a result, the gladiators have taken their campaigns to the nooks and crannies of towns and villages across the state in a discreet manner. It could be observed that many of the chairmanship and councillorship candidates did not print posters or billboards, but instead preferred to meet people on a one-on-one level.
As the low-key preparations for the election by all the stakeholders are ongoing, many believe that the council poll would be business as usual, like the previous council elections in the state where the ruling party won all the chairmanship and councillorship seats in all the 18 local government areas. Election observers, speaking on past elections in the state, said they were always characterised by low voter turnout, vote-buying, alleged writing of results by the party in power and other electoral malpractices.
The results emanating from various local government elections across the country recently showed that the party in power had the dominating chances, a development many believed does not give credibility to the council poll, leading some political pundits to suggest that the Independent National Electoral Commission take over the conduct of the LG election.
It was widely reported that the November 16 governorship election was marred with vote-trading when a vote was allegedly purchased for as much as N20,000 by politicians desperate to win their polling units in many parts of the state. Some residents believe a similar scenario may play out on Saturday.
The APC has absolved itself of any electoral malpractices during the poll. The party, through its Publicity Secretary, Mr Alex Kalejaiye, stated that the party is popular and loved by the people of the state, making victory certain for the ruling party. Kalejaiye emphasised that there were no plans to alter the rules, but rather to play the election game strictly according to the rules. According to him, the party has already begun preparations for the election and has selected credible and competent individuals as its chairmanship and councillorship candidates.
He said, “In the last governorship election, nobody voted because of money. The people voted for performance, popularity and for peace. Those things influenced the decisions of the people. We were never involved in vote-buying. We are also counting on that right now, we know what we have done and what we are doing for the good people of Ondo State, and they won’t have a problem with the APC.
“We decided to set up committees at the local and ward levels to handle mobilisation, sensitisation and campaigns, but we felt that might not be enough, there should be a coordinating body. Therefore, a committee has also been put in place at the state level to coordinate the various activities going on at the local government areas and the ward levels.”
The state Chairman of the Zenith Labour Party, Mr Cornelius Akintoye, said the opposition party would not allow any form of electoral malpractices during the forthcoming poll, explaining that members of the party in all the 18 local government areas and 203 wards of the state had been directed to be vigilant and ensure all the votes count.
“We have been campaigning from door to door at the grassroots for this election and we are very sure of winning in many local government areas. We have told our people to be vigilant on election day, that anywhere they observe infractions during the poll, they should raise the alarm and we will take it up from there. We are not going to allow any electoral malpractice to take place. As I said, we are confident of victory in the election,” the chairman boasted.
There was a twist to the election on Thursday, as the main opposition party in the state, the PDP, withdrew from the race. In a statement issued by the state Director of Media And Publicity, Mr Leye Igbabo, the party stated that it had no confidence in the electoral process towards the poll.
The statement read, “This decision is a product of several layers of consultations of party leaders, stakeholders and the national secretariat of our great party. Our party fielded 15 chairmanship candidates in 15 local government areas and 131 councillorship candidates. But, from all indications, ODIEC’s credibility, transparency, and impartiality have failed the integrity test.
“Recent observations and reports point to a troubling pattern of double standards by ODIEC, raising serious doubts about their ability to conduct a free, fair, and credible election. As a responsible political party committed to democracy and the rule of law, we cannot, in good conscience, confer legitimacy on this compromised process by participating in the election.
“We have, therefore, resolved to withdraw our participation in this exercise to uphold the integrity of our party and our unwavering belief in credible electoral practices.”
The development did not go down well with some party members and candidates as they kicked against the PDP’s withdrawal from the council election.
The chairmanship candidate of the PDP in Akure South, Tuyi Adekanmbi, who led the vice chairmanship and councillorship candidates of the party in protest to the Nigeria Union of Journalists Press Center in Akure, described the withdrawal as a betrayal on the part of the party. He said they were loyal members of the PDP who had signified their interest in the election over seven months ago and paid expression of interest and nomination forms to participate in the election. He expressed regret that the party announced its withdrawal without consulting the candidates who had spent money on posters, jingles, and other campaign activities.
“The party was aware of our contest, they screened our forms, they have been to ODIEC, everything we did, they gave us the go-ahead to place the posters, banners and to seek votes. Everybody will agree with me: you don’t go to an election without money, no matter how small; being a councillor candidate, you know how much money it took to canvass people to vote for you. Now the party came up in less than 72 hours of the election and without the consent of the aspirants to boycott that election. This is an infringement of our rights and if they are going to do it, it should not be done to loyal party members like us. In this party, we have carried our cross through thick and thin,” he said.
Many believed that PDP’s withdrawal from the race would further enhance the chance of the APC as other minor opposition parties may not pose a big threat to the chance of the ruling party.
A political analyst, Mr Ibrahim Owolabi, said the election may be business as usual, noting that local government areas in Nigeria, due to the autonomy granted them by the Supreme Court, would generate more interest and the ruling party in the state would want to extend its dominance to the grassroots administration. He, however, noted that the power lies on the people, saying if the people could insist and ensure that their votes count, the electoral malpractices could be reduced.
“We are in Nigeria and we all know how the local government election is being conducted. It is always the ruling party winning all the local government areas by all means. Now that the autonomy has been granted to the councils, the desperation may be higher because more money would now be in the local government areas. If the people can, however, insist and ensure they vote and their votes count, there may be a difference this time around,” Owolabi stated.
A political scientist, Mr Kunle Alabi, expressed optimism that there might be an improvement in the forthcoming local government poll in the state because people have become more enlightened about the council election than the previous exercises.
He said, “I believe there may be a slight difference in this election than what we used to have before because people are more politically enlightened nowadays. It is the grassroots election and people at the grassroots know themselves and know better candidates among those contesting. So it may be difficult to impose candidates on them. I will only appeal to the stakeholders to play the game according to the rules.”
Meanwhile, Governor Aiyedatiwa has called on gladiators not to cause a crisis before, during and after the poll. The governor, who spoke through the Deputy Governor, Dr Olayide Adelami, at a forum on Wednesday, particularly asked parents to warn their wards not to be used to cause trouble during the election.
“Dear good people of Ondo State, I wish to remind you that the local government election will be held in the state on Saturday, 18th January 2025 across the 18 local government areas. I, therefore, wish to charge everyone to be law-abiding before, during and after the election. Kindly allow me to especially admonish all parents and guardians to rein in their wards to forestall their being used as elements of destruction by desperate political gladiators. It is our obligation to conduct ourselves in the most orderly manner. On our part as a responsible government, we shall provide a level playing field for all political parties during the exercise.”
