A former member of the Senate, Yisa Braimoh has appraised the recently held local government chairmanship and councillorship rerun elections in Esan North Local government in Edo state, concluding that the proposed national conference should delete the provision for State Independent Electoral Commissions (SIECs) in the constitution.
Braimoh, (Edo North) who represented the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, from 2007 to 2011 in the Senate spoke against the backdrop of the anomalies that greeted the local elections in the state.
The State Government in conjunction with Edo State Independent Electoral Commission (EDSIEC) allegedly supplanted John Yakubu of the PDP who won the chairmanship election with Sam Oboh of the All Progressive Congress (APC).
Also, the elected PDP councilors were reportedly given their certificates of return by the EDSIEC Ward Returning Officers while the Local Government Returning Officer who had the responsibility of announcing the winner of the chairmanship election fled from Uromi and the Chairman of EDSIEC, Solomon Ogoh, in Benin announced the APC candidate winner of the election while collation of results was yet to be concluded in Uromi, the headquarters of Esan North East Local Government Area.
The former legislator in a statement issued on Monday in Abuja, lamented the pattern of the conduct and results of Local Government elections nationwide in recent years and up to now “make it imperative for the forthcoming National Conference to abolish SIECs and return the responsibility for council elections to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).”
Braimoh condemned in strong terms, the action of the Edo State Government in the conduct and announcement of fictitious result for the chairmanship election in Esan North East Local Government, saying it underscored the magnitude of electoral manipulation and democratic flaws at that level of government.
He also wondered why the Adams Oshiomhole-led State Government would commission a 30-minute Channels Television Live Broadcast to accuse the State Commissioner of Police and Police personnel of electoral fraud in the conduct and announcement of results of Esan North East Local Government elections.
“The entire contraption in Edo State is laughable and the brazen electoral thievery is condemnable. This is the first time in the annals of election in Nigeria that the perceived winner of State Local Government election would commission a live television broadcast to justify perfidy through diversion of attention by throwing barbs at the Police,” he said.
While condemning the culture of the party in power in the states, recording landslide victory at local elections, Braimoh is of the strong view that the national conference should addressed what he called ‘democratic flaws”.
He posited that “reasons for this unacceptable democratic flaw are not far-fetched: corruption, winner-takes-all syndrome and the awesome powers wielded by State Governors in the guise of ‘Executive Governor” under the presidential system of government, et al.”
