By Oladotun F. Olumuyiwa
It’s so insane that nobody is talking about how disorganized and useless our Local Government Elections have been across the country.
The more it seems the power is getting closer to the people at the grassroot the more the power that be conspires to mess everything up.
Virtually all the local government elections conducted recently were nothing but a mere shambolic exercise.
A mere show of imposition by a single party forcing itself on the poor masses at the local government levels. Even when it was obvious this ruling party stalwarts haven’t kept to their previous campaign promises at the State level.
From Imo to Kaduna Local Government elections, there was nothing to write home about.
The recent Kaduna Local Government elections need to be declared null and void or declare a rerun based on several evidences that litter the Internet. The sordid act of malpractices and outright intimidation at the polling units were also unprecedented.
For instance, in this inset picture above, Zagon Kataf Local Government elections was married by the Kaduna State Electoral Commission itself by refusing to dispatch electoral materials to major polling units in the state.
Even when the poor electorates were eagerly anticipating these materials at their various Polling units. They all waited in vain. Yet the state in its hideous style went ahead to declare a winner for elections that never took place in some polling units on the radio and Television later in the day of the elections. So pathetic!
A similar story happened in Imo State, at Ikeduru Local Government, where the Chairmanship Candidate was intentionally frustrated by the Imo State INEC by refusing to dispatch electoral materials to his Polling units hence his people were prevented from voting. In spite of this, an unknown winner of the shambolic Election exercise emerged!
So tell me, how shall we continue like this as a nation?
When the news of Local Government Autonomy broke out, we all rejoiced thinking it would translate to a new dawn for the masses at the grassroot not knowing it was a ruse to block the mouth of most of the civil society groups agitating for such an autonomy.
Let us look at this together, if people at the local government level could not feel the dividends of democracy then what’s the point?.
The purpose of democratic society has been defeated the moment it is no longer people oriented.
And there is no other power behind all these manipulations during these elections other than all these State Governors.
They are power drunk and always want to subject the whole State underneath their grip and control. And since our constitution isn’t favourable to the local authority they get away with everything.
So the question now is, what is the essence of Local Government Autonomy Act that was signed by the President? People need to know!
Picture credit: Beevan Magoni