LASIEC sets to hold by-election in Surulere Ward on Saturday

LASIEC Chairman, Justice Ayotunde Phillips

The Lagos State Independent Electoral Commission, LASIEC, says it is ready to conduct by-election into Ward A (Obele/Oniwala) in Surulere Local Government Area of Lagos tomorrow (Saturday).

The scheduled by-election was necessitated by the death of the Councillor, representing the Ward, Hon. Razak Bello, which imposed a constitutional duty on the Commission to organise a by-election in the ward so that residents of the area were given the opportunity to choose a new representative through the ballot.

At  news conference on Friday in Yaba, Lagos, LASIEC Chairman, Justice Ayotunde Phillips (Rtd) said the commission was fully ready for the poll, which would be contested by two political parties-All Progressives Congress, APC, and the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.

She said since the demise of Bello, the Commission issued the notice of By-election along with the guidelines for the poll on Wednesday, 10 April, 2019 at a forum which was attended by many stakeholders to signal the commencement of the process that would culminate into the conduct of the election.

Phillips said only two candidates, Kazeem Bello (APC ) and Abdulateef Bolaji Sanni ( PDP) indicated interest to contest the election.

The LASIEC boss assured residents of  the affected Ward and other stakeholders that the Commission was ready and fully prepared for the by-election, as it had taken delivery of all election materials, both sensitive and non-sensitive, required for the conduct of the poll.

“We have also trained our personnel who will participate in the conduct of the by-election. Even though we are going to use the staff of the Commission for the conduct of the  by- election, the Commission had to retrain the staff to ensure that they are up to date in terms of the information and knowledge required to enable them discharge their duties effectively and efficiently as election managers.

“The Commission will, therefore, tolerate no excuses for mistakes on the part of the personnel. All election personnel are expected to comply fully with the rules and regulations guiding the conduct of elections.

“We also recognise the complementary role played by security agencies, particularly the police, the Department of State Service ( DSS ) and the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps, in ensuring hitch-free and peaceful elections. The Commission has, therefore, enlisted the support and cooperation of relevant security agencies and they have assured us that adequate security would be provided to forestall any breakdown of law and order in the affected area,” she stated.

Phillips appealed to all eligible registered voters to go out en-masse and cast their votes for any candidate or political party of their choice without any fear of molestation or attack, adding that this by-election was another golden opportunity for eligible registered voters in Ward A ( Obele/ Oniwala ) to vote for either of the two candidates whom they believed would give them effective representation in government at the Local Government level and facilitate development to  the community.

“The period of the by-election is between 9.00a.m. and 3.00p.m. on Saturday, 27thApril, 2019.  Accreditation and voting will take place simultaneously. There will be no restriction of vehicular movement during the period of the bye-election so that business and economic activities of the people are not disrupted or paralysed unduly.

“The Commission is determined to make the electoral process free, fair and credible. We shall make people’s votes to count. The Commission, however, expects politicians and other stakeholders to give peace a chance as acts of lawlessness will not be tolerated,” she said.

Also speaking, the Electoral Commissioner in charge of the zone, Hon. Olusegun Ayedun, expressed confidence that there would be a large turn-out of voters for the by-election in view of the assurance the Commission had received from stakeholders.

Present at the event were other Electoral Commissioners of the Commission: Dr. Bunmi Omoseyindemi, Mrs Toyin Ibrahim-Famakinwa, Prof. Tunde Babawale and Dr. Noah Lawal-Jinadu,as well as Directors and Heads of Department/ Unit of the Commission.

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