By Folorunsho Alagbede
The Ogun State House of Assembly has tasked the State Independent Electoral Commission, (OGSIEC) to adhere strictly to its electoral guidelines in the November 16th Local Government election in the state.
The Speaker, Oludaisi Elemide, gave the charge on Friday during an interface between OGSIEC and the State Inter-party Advisory Council, (IPAC), led by its Chairman, Sanyaolu Abayomi at the Assembly Complex, Oke Mosan, Abeokuta.
The Speaker, along with his fellow lawmakers, assured that the Assembly was ready to collaborate with the Commission to ensure a free and fair election.
In their contributions, Minority Leader Lukman Adeleyeam and Yusuf Amosun, a member representing Ewekoro State Constituency, urged the Commission to make sure that all procedures leading up to the election adhere to the constitution to avoid needless lawsuits before, during, and after the election.
They noted that the Assembly was ready to assist in amending the state electoral law if the need arose.
Earlier in his presentation, the IPAC Chairman, Sanyaolu, speaking through the PRO, Itunu Abioro, requested a further reduction in the administrative fees being charged by the Commission to allow more candidates participate in the local government election.
Responding on behalf of the Commission, the Commissioner 1 in charge of Operations, Mr Tunji Akanni, said the Commission had continued to interface with all stakeholders including IPAC in the course of the election process, with OGSIEC Electoral Guidelines approved by the House, in line with the State electoral law.
He advised political parties to provide credible candidates, conduct robust campaigns, and present credible party agents to monitor their votes at the polls, recalling that the majority of political parties did not have party agents to represent them on election day.
