The Oyo State Independent Electoral Commission (OYSIEC) and the leadership of political parties have adopted the use of Permanent Voters Card (PVC) as the sole means of identification by voters in the forthcoming Local Government Council Election in the state.
The agreement was reached by both parties at the end of a meeting held at the Conference Room of the Commission’s Headquarters, Ibadan.
Addressing the executive members and representatives of the political parties, the OYSIEC Chairman, Isiaka Olagunju, SAN, said the purpose of the engagement was to give an update on the progress made so far by the commission and dialogue on how to achieve free, fair, transparent and credible elections, come 2024.
Intensify efforts
Olagunju, who lauded the political parties for their readiness to participate in the election, harped on the need for all and sundry to allow the will of the masses to prevail on the election day, calling on them to intensify efforts on voter education and ensure their followers abide by the electoral law, so as to have a violence free election.
On the screening of candidates, the OYSIEC Chairman submitted that it became imperative to interface with the candidates and verify the documents submitted to prevent unforeseen circumstances.
Olagunju sought the support and cooperation of the political parties towards achieving a free, fair, transparent, credible and peaceful election.
He stated: “Let me appreciate the turn-out and your readiness to participate in the upcoming Local Government Council election. I want to appeal to you to do your homework properly, make the job simpler for the commission by presenting qualified candidates, this will assist us a lot.
“We have appealed to the body in charge of collecting tax to be considerate and make the charges affordable for candidates. Let’s be good ambassadors of the state, let’s shun violence, intimidation, harassment and ensure the will of the masses prevail in the next Local Government Council election,” Olagunju stated.
The Chairman, Inter Party Advisory Council (IPAC), Oyo State, Dare Ojo, advised the leadership of OYSIEC to be sincere and fair to all in the engagement of ad-hoc staff, in order to have free and fair election.
Peaceful election
Ojo, who is also the Chairman of the Action Democratic Party in the state, emphasised the need for effective collaboration between security agencies and OYSIEC to have a peaceful election.
He enjoined candidates of various political parties to encourage their members to get prepared for the poll, saying the forthcoming Local Government Council election would be unique.
Ojo noted: “We all agreed that OYSIEC should always call a meeting to give us an update. Today’s meeting was highly successful, all the political parties were present and poured out their minds.
“We all agreed we will only use Permanent Voter Card for election, all other means of identification should be cancelled. We equally agreed that all our candidates should come for screening,” the IPAC Chairman stated.
Ojo said the meeting agreed that OYSIEC should get in touch with security agencies and also engage the National Orientation Agency (NOA) on an enlightenment campaign, and that political parties should create awareness and sensitise their members on the importance of Local Government Council election, among other things.
Lateefah Ibrahim
