Kunle Adelabu
Residents of Ikorodu have expressed mixed feelings towards the comments of the state chairman of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Lagos State, Pastor Cornelius Ojelabi that elections would be conducted in the 20 Local Council Areas and 37 Local Council Development Areas in the state.
His reaction on Sunday was in response to reports making the rounds that election will only hold in the 20 councils that are constitutionally recognised.
Ojelabi in affirming that elections would hold in the 57 LGs and LCDAs, emphasised that since their creation, the LCDAs have been the closest to the grassroots and brought developments.
In his reaction to the APC State Chairman’s pronouncement on THE IMPACT platform, Ogbeni Adewunmi Amusa queried if it was the party or the government that was empowered to determine the conduct of an election.
“By the party? I think it should be by the Lagos State Government,” he said.
A member of the APC in Ikorodu, Mr Owolabi Anifowoshe, who posted the statement from the APC state chairman on the platform, in his counter reaction to Amusa, said that there was nothing wrong in the chieftains of the Governance Advisory Council (GAC), the highest decision making body in the APC, which Pastor Ojelabi spoke for, making such a pronouncement.
“The GAC is an internal mechanism of the party in the state and they have been the most powerful decision making body of our party in Lagos State…The constitutionality question is unnecessary…I think it is an innovative strategy to manage party cohesion and affairs between the government in the state and the party stakeholders,” he opined.
Also corroborating Owolabi Anifowoshe’s position is a councillorship aspirant in Ikorodu LG, Abbey Balogun, who argued that the position of the GAC cleared the air on the issue of the LG elections:
“In addition, I feel the GAC’s stance is coming after deep consideration of the many possible options the party could take on the forthcoming LG Elections and their legal implications.
Again ruling parties have a lot of influence on elections in Nigeria so Lagos APC GAC’s decision is probably to settle the dust initially raised on the matter in some quarters.”
An analyst and holder of the Guinness Book of World Record in both individual and group Read Aloud Marathon, Mr Bayode Olawunmi – Treasures, in his contribution queried the constitutionality of the APC’s GAC to make such decision and pronouncement.
In his words, “Is the GAC constitutionally recognized to conduct elections? Can the GAC have resolved to conduct elections in the 57 local government and LCDAs in the first place?”
Bayode-Treasures reacting further to Owolabi, emphasized:
“But the fact is you only saw sense in this because you’re a member of the party.
“It is not the responsibility of the party to conduct LG elections; it is that of the state government and this is regardless of and should be devoid of party affiliation.
“So, when the headline reads “GAC resolves to conduct Local Government elections”, have you imagined how this news will be twisted and analyzed on Arise News tomorrow?
“Moreover, whether the GAC resolves or not, the Supreme Court has pronounced they can only recognize 20 LGAs in Lagos, so should GAC have resolved to conduct elections in the 57 LGAs and LCDAs in the first instance?”
OlaOluwa Godwin Oke, another analyst and co – coordinator, Concerned Ikorodu Division Youth (CIDY), also expressed his opposition to the position of the ruling party,
“The official channel for such information should be the state government. It remains speculation until the state issues an official statement.”
Dayo Hassan, the Convener of the EasyGold Foundation quipped, “Party supremacy is within the party. Local government election is a state affair.”
Hon. Yusuf, the Supervisor councillor for Chieftaincy, Ikorodu West LCDA, was also of the view that the state government is the only body empowered to speak on the elections.
“The State government through the electoral empire is the only authority approved to speak on the modalities for election.
While the state assembly can only provide the template or administrative guidelines for the state government.”
United Kingdom based scholar, Dr Agboola Odesanya, charged that the APC chieftains will have to obey the Supreme Court ruling on the recognized local governments:
“GAC simply had to obey the SC. It couldn’t decide otherwise.”
Aladé Julius Oloyédé, a public commentator said that the issue should not be creating any confusion, but should be resolved administratively.
“There ought to be no confusion because the LCDAs remain component units of the 20 local governments listed in the constitution of the federal republic.
“The probable gerrymandering hitches or issues may be circumvented by adminstrative innovation.”
In the light of the foregoing analyses and positions taken by the public and political interests groups across the broad spectrum of social and political affiliations in Ikorodu Division as a case study, 2025 local government elections in Lagos State may prove to be a lot more challenging and interesting as the election date draws close.
