The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has confirmed that the Labour Party (LP) will not be participating in the forthcoming National Assembly by-elections scheduled for next week in Edo State.
INEC said the party failed to meet the legal requirements for candidate nomination, adding that its primary election was neither monitored nor officially communicated to the commission.
The by-elections are being held to fill the vacant Edo Central Senatorial seat and the Ovia Federal Constituency, following the emergence of Senator Monday Okpebholo and Hon. Dennis Idahosa as Governor and Deputy Governor of the state.
Speaking during a press briefing at the commission’s office in Benin City, the Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC), Prof. Anugbum Onuoha, made it clear that the Labour Party was not among the nine political parties whose candidates were cleared for the polls.
“From our records, the Labour Party and some other parties neither invited us to observe their primaries nor complied with the necessary procedures. In some cases, we arrived at venues, but the locations were shut, and no activity took place,” Onuoha stated.
This clarification comes amid reports that the Labour Party had presented Mr. Paul Okojie as its candidate for the Edo Central Senatorial District. However, INEC insists that due process was not followed.
The nine political parties cleared by INEC to contest the elections are: Action Alliance (AA), African Democratic Congress (ADC), All Progressives Congress (APC), Allied Peoples Movement (APM), Action Peoples Party (APP), Action Democratic Party (ADP), New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), and Zenith Labour Party (ZLP).
Onuoha assured that the commission is fully prepared to conduct a free, fair and credible exercise. He revealed that non-sensitive election materials have already been deployed to the affected local government areas, and that the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) has been configured for use.
“Of the 719,504 registered voters in the seven LGAs where elections will hold, 101,617 Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) have yet to be collected,” he said.
The Edo REC also used the opportunity to respond to recent calls by the Peoples Democratic Party for his removal, dismissing them as baseless.
“Even if your brother is appointed to INEC, he cannot compromise the system. The structure of the commission makes that impossible. We urge the media and stakeholders to support us in ensuring transparency and credibility,” he added.
