The Oyo State chapter of the Socialist Party of Nigeria, SPN, on Monday said that the election that brought in the sacked local government chairmen and local council development areas chairmen was full of illegality and manipulation, noting that Governor Seyi Makinde was also quick to dissolve them without a recourse to the procedure stipulated in the constitution.
SPN in a statement signed by its Secretary, Comrade Ayodeji Adigun described the attempt as not only tantamount to a replacement of illegality with impunity but will also mean continuation of illegality by the Seyi Makinde-led Government.
But, SPN while reacting, demands immediate free, fair, transparent and democratically-organized elections into the 33 Local Councils recognized by the constitution.
The party in the statement in Ibadan, the state capital by its Secretary, Ayodeji Adigun also demand full independence and autonomy for Local governments including direct control of their funds and federal allocations without any undue interference by the State government through State and Local Government Joint Accounts or any other fraudulent device.
The party also faulted the way and manner to which Makinde dissolved the local government chairmen elected under the administration of Mr. Abiola Ajimobi, the immediate past Governor of the state.
Adigun said, “This attempt will not only be tantamount to a replacement of illegality with impunity but will also mean continuation of illegality by the Seyi Makinde-led Government.
“The SPN hereby demands immediate free, fair, transparent and democratically-organized elections into the 33 Local Councils recognized by the constitution. We also demand full independence and autonomy for Local governments including direct control of their funds and federal allocations without any undue interference by the State government through State and Local Government Joint Accounts or any other fraudulent device.
“While we of the SPN acknowledged the fact that the election that brought the sacked chairmen to the office was illegal and characterized with a lot of manipulation and malpractices, however, we faulted the way and manner the Governor was so hasty and desperate with the unilateral decision that led to the dissolution of both the LGA and LCDA chairmen without a recourse to the procedure stipulated by the constitution.
“Unfortunately, in less than three months after the sack of the 33 LGA and 35 LCDA chairmen, the same Governor Seyi Makinde-led government which claimed that the decision to sack the LGA and LCDA chairmen was to end the illegality foisted on the Oyo State people following the May 12, 2018 farce called local government election conducted by the Ajimobi/APC led government is now planning to replace the sacked LGA and LCDA chairmen with new set of unelected caretaker chairmen. This itself is illegal as it represents an infraction of the necessary provisions of the constitution.
“While it is true that the decision of the Ajimobi-led government to recycle caretaker committees across the 33LGA for seven years of its eight years tenure including the illegally created 35LCDA and the farce called local government election organized on the May, 12, 2018 violated the necessary provision of the constitution, however, we do not believe that the imposition of the caretaker committee on the 33LGA and continuous recognition of the 35 LCDA that is also an infraction of the constitution is the best medication as claimed by the PDP to the illegality associated with the local government administration under the watch of the previous APC-led government in the state.
“It is in the light of this background, we fault the plan by the Seyi-Makinde led government to replace the sacked council men with caretakers and sole administrators in all of the 33LGA and 35 LCDA across the state respectively. We also demand that the number of the LGA must be reverted to the 33 recognized by the constitution while calling for immediate free, fair and democratically-organized elections into the Local Councils. It is also our belief in SPN that OYSIEC must be reconstituted such that it will compromise elected representatives of trade union and civil society organization including the members of political parties in preparation for the fresh local government election.
“However, we also recognize how difficult or impossible it will be for the Seyi Makinde-led government like other previous pro-capitalist governments in the state to comply with this kind of proposal. This is because it is a government that was formed through a coalition of pro-capitalist political parties. Under this kind of situation, it is obvious that the political position will definitely be shared among members of political parties that are involved in the so-called coalition. Therefore, to achieve this kind of goal will require a compromising OYSIEC that will be a tool of manipulation by the PDP-led government such that election will be also be rigged in favour of the candidates of the PDP and other political parties involved in the coalition.
“However, it is not enough to organize a credible election and achieve local government autonomy, we call on workers, youth and the poor masses to join and support the SPN and help build it as a strong party that is capable of defeating all anti-poor political parties including the APC and PDP and form a government that will, on the basis of socialist plan, use human and material resources of the society for the benefit of all”.
