Ondo lawyer sues Aiyedatiwa, ODIEC over LG election

A legal practitioner and human rights activist, Tope Temokun, on Monday, filed a suit at the Ondo State High Court, Akure, seeking an order of the court to compel the Ondo State Independent Electoral Commission to conduct a local government election.

The Chairman of the ODIEC, Joseph Aremo, had earlier announced the indefinite postponement of the local government election which earlier scheduled to be held in July.

Aremo said the election was postponed because no single political party complied with the guidelines of the proposed election, despite the issuance of guidelines for the election on schedule.

The suit had the state governor, Lucky Aiyedatiwa, the Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice Mr Kayode Ajulo as well as the ODIEC as the first, second and third defendants in the suit respectively.

In the originating summons, the lawyer claimed that the provisions of Sections 1(1), (2) and (3) and Section 7(1) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (As Amended) and Section 1(1) the Local Government Administration, Conduct of Local Government Election, and Allied Matters Law, CAP 87, VOL.2, Laws of Ondo State, 2006, are being violated by the first defendant’s act of “appointing and/or constituting and/or inaugurating transition committees to oversee the affairs of the LGAs in the state, which he said had deprived him of his right to vote in and have a democratically elected local government council in his local government area”.

Temokun prayed the court that “the first defendant’s act of appointing and/or constituting and/or inaugurating any person or persons or committee, be it caretaker or transition committee, or by whatever name so-called, other than democratically elected LCDAs to govern or administer or oversee the affairs of the LGAs in Ondo State is illegal and unconstitutional.”

He sought an order of the court to direct and/or to proceed to conduct LG elections in the state to put in place democratically elected Local government councils, “to govern or administer or oversee the affairs of the Local Government Areas in Ondo State, for the purpose of enforcing and giving effect to the orders of the Supreme Court.”

He also prayed to the court for “an order of perpetual injunction restraining the first defendant ( Governor Aiyedatiwa) from further appointing and/or constituting and/or inaugurating any person or persons or committee, be it caretaker or transition committee, or by whatever name so-called, other than democratically elected LG councils, to govern or administer or oversee the affairs of the local government areas in Ondo State.”

The Supreme Court recently granted financial autonomy to the local governments in the country, declaring that it is unconstitutional for state governors to hold funds allocated for local government administrations.

The court further declared that a state government has no power to appoint a caretaker committee and a local government council is only recognisable with a democratically elected government.

The Ondo State Government also recently constituted transition committees for the newly created 33 Local Council Development Areas. However, the development raised controversy in the state.