The recently held Local Government poll in Lagos State generated intense heat as the two leading parties, the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) used the occasion to test their might and popularity. OLAOLU OLADIPO captures the intrigues and dynamics at play before, during and after the polls.
Political activities reached a fever pitch barely 48 hours to Local Government elections into the 20 Local Councils and 37 Development Areas in Lagos State. Candidates and supporters of the various political parties intensified campaigns to woo voters. To underscore their readiness, the leading political parties, especially the ruling Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) and the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) engaged in poster war by taking available public space to drum up support for their candidates. Members even sought votes by embarking on house to house campaigns.
Party leaders even engaged in road shows and street-to-street campaigns. To avoid any untoward outcome, series of reconciliatory moves were held. This was occasioned by the acrimony generated by the selection process which intensified as the election drew near. Meanwhile, the Chairman of the Lagos State Independent Electoral Commission (LASIEC),
Justice Abdul Fatai Afolabi Adeyinka (retd.), at a press briefing Friday 21, October, assured voters and the parties that his commission had put in place mechanism for a credible election.
Adeyinka told newshounds that gathered at the Yaba office of the commission that at least 20,000 electoral officers and ad hoc staff would be deployed for the election. The former chef judge of Lagos State also stated that he had asked the police to deploy about 20,000 officers to provide adequate security.
Two days before, the state government had restricted movement during the polls to between 7a.m. and 4 p.m. Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Mr. Lateef Ibirogba, in a statement wrote that the decision had been at the request of LASIEC. Ibirogba clarified that the restriction included human and vehicular movement to minimise incidence of multiple voting and other vices that may mar the elections.
“In view of the importance of this election to the grassroots and the need for peace, tranquillity and orderliness, which are the hallmarks of this administration, all citizens are directed to stay within their locality where they should perform their civic duties in accordance with the law,” the commissioner wrote.
In the end, the exercise was generally peaceful, though with pockets of isolated violence in parts of the state. Unlike in the past, PDP contested the elections in contrast to the past when it boycotted it.
The first sign that the polls were heading into troubled waters was when the country’s High Commissioner to Ghana, Senator Musiliu Obanikoro, accused the leadership of ACN of trying to annul the victory of his son Babajide in the chairmanship poll for Ikoyi-Obalende, LCDA.
At a hurriedly organised press conference, he claimed his son who contested on the platform of PDP won the polls. “We have the results of the election. We have won every ward in the LCDA. They are trying to annul it.”
According to him, the collated result shows that his son recorded 5,408 votes against ACN’s 4695 votes. “What they are trying to do is create confusion so that the election does not stand. But we shall do everything it takes to ensure that what they are trying to do does not stand,” he said.
A swift response came from the state chapter of the ACN, who through its Publicity Secretary, Mr. Joe Igbokwe described the allegation as being clever by half and a childish blackmail concocted to hoodwink the people.
In a release endorsed by him, the party said the claim is an attempt to heat up the polity in the hope that it (the PDP) will be rewarded with favours it never merited. ACN insists that while the party awaits LASIEC’s official announcement it maintains that PDP does not exist in Lagos and does not have the goodwill to win one LCDA in the election.
In spite of the verbal fire works, there was a big suspense as candidates awaited the final word from the LASIEC over the electoral outcomes. Anxious newsmen had to mill around the gates of the commission on Sunday to await its final words on the outcome.
Though many of the high ranking members of the commission who managed to speak with newsmen said the LASIEC will release the result later in the afternoon but in the interim, there were claims and counter claims by candidates about who actually won.
And in several areas, there were some street demonstrations by some members of the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) who made a very good showing in Agege. Some of the demonstrators carried placards bearing several inscriptions who spoke with LEADERSHIP SUNDAY claimed their candidates won both the chairmanship and all the councillorship seats.
In Ikoyi-Obalende, PDP supporters continued their siege on the council headquarters in Ikoyi. The situation was the same in Badagry Central LCDA. The ACN accused its rival of holding hostage eight Supervisory Polling Officers (SPO) of the electoral Commission at the council secretariat.
The protesting politician barred them from leaving the premises of the council with gates firmly locked thus trapping both workers and electoral officers.
The SPOs were prevented from leaving the secretariat when some members of the opposition stormed the secretariat to protest the announcement of the incumbent Chairman Hon. Adewale Rasaq Adeniji as the winner as against Ibrahim Babajide Obanikoro the PDP flag bearer at the polls.
In a telephone interview with LEADERSHIP SUNDAY, Senator Musiliu Obanikoro denied the hostage claim saying that his mission was to protest an alleged annulment of his son’s electoral result by the ACN. Reacting to the siege, Adeniji said that from every indication and from what he had gathered from his polling agents, he was sure that he had won the election. “If Koro is not satisfied with what is on the ground, it is better for him to go to court rather than constituting himself into a nuisance.”
Members of the PDP in Badagry Central LCDA took to the streets on Monday to protest the result declared in favour of Moses Dosu Husitode of ACN as against the party’s Mustapha Dada but what could have led to a breakdown of law and order was brought under control by the law enforcement agents deployed to the area.
The same scenario played out in Eredo LCDA when members led by a former ACN chieftain led some suspected thugs to the secretariat to prevent LASIEC officials from announcing the result which they feared was in favour of the Chairman, Sabiu Laja Adelaja. In the end, properties worth thousands of naira were destroyed.
Announcement came on Monday with the ACN winning by landslide. In the results announced officially by LASIEC late into the night by Justice Adeyinka, the ACN won all the chairmanship seats in the 20 local governments and 37 local council development areas.
Justice Adeyinka said the ACN had satisfied the provisions of the law establishing LASIEC and had emerged victorious in the polls. He further disclosed that the ACN won 355 councillorship seats out of the 376 seats contested while the PDP won 18 seats while the CPC won two seats with the councillorship election for Ward H in Mushin Local Government declared inconclusive.
To the aggrieved PDP, the retired judge stated, “Aggrieved parties should go to tribunal for redress. The Chief Judge has set up election appeal tribunal because there is likelihood that some might want to go to court to seek redress.”
There was intensified violence across the state on Tuesday as members of the PDP trooped to the streets paralysing business activities. Reacting, ACN described the action as an open endorsement of gross illegality, violence and underhand practices.
To the ACN, PDP is reluctant to go to court because it knows its house of blackmail will collapse badly in any court. Speaking on behalf of his party, Mr. Joe Igbokwe said the PDP faced with the reality that it would not corner some political space it does not have in Lagos through sheer blackmail, has exposed itself as perpetrators of violence and illegality.
Igbokwe added another dimension when he alleged that PDP in Eti-Osa, Ikoyi/Obalende and its environs at a meeting last night planned to attack the ACN leaders, elected officials and the party members. Putting a seal of finality on the issue, national leader of the ACN, Senator Bola Tinubu, congratulated the Lagos ACN and warned that it was time to celebrate less and get back to work.
He however added that it would be at the tribunal as it always does and not in the streets, therefore advising all other aggrieved parties to toe that line, as provided by the law. “It is all about service and the people have made their choice on the persons they wish to govern them and the progressive platform on which they can realise their democratic yearnings,” an elated Asiwaju Tinubu said.
On the same day, PDP at a press conference organised to appraise the outcome of the polls announced that it would contest the results in court. Obanikoro said he lacked faith in the election petitions tribunals constituted by the state government.
Addressing newsmen on the decision of the party to head to the court, state chairman of the PDP, Setonji Kosheodo, relying on Sections 51 and 52 of LASIEC Law, he said LASIEC is not empowered constitutionally to announce results.’’
According to him, “Our party won in at least four of the local government areas and in 125 wards that we have the results signed by LASIEC officials and ACN agents in the various polling units.’’
With the councils polls now over, the two leading parties will have to wait for another time to test their strength, perhaps judging by the intrigues and tension generated, observers are however of the opinion that the polls possibly provided an insight into what 2015 would look like.