Governorship polls may not hold in ten states

234Next

25 March 2011

Governorship polls may not hold in ten states

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) may not conduct governorship elections in about 10 states in the coming April poll. The states are missing from the commission’s website on the list of states with governorship candidates.

The Federal High Court in Abuja, recently stopped the commission from conducting governorship elections in Kogi, Sokoto, Adamawa, Cross Rivers and Bayelsa states.

The court held that the tenure of the five sitting governors Ibrahim Idris [Kogi]; Aliyu Wammakko [Sokoto]; Murtala Nyako [Adamawa]; Liyel Imoke [Cross Rivers] and Timipre Sylva [Bayelsa] shall not expire until next year.

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NEXT, however, reported that the electoral body may have deceived Nigerians when it claimed that it had pleaded with the Court in Abuja to allow it conduct governorship elections in the five states that the court earlier ruled there will be no election.

Ms Ajie said she filed an appeal on behalf of the electoral body as well as a motion for stay of action on the ruling at the Federal High Court free of charge, believing that her action was in the interest of Nigerians.

However, officials of the commission asked her to withdraw her motion and the Notice of Appeal with a promise that its lawyers, who originally handled the case, will take action on the judgment. Despite the promise, INEC lawyers have neither filed a motion to stay action nor a Notice of Appeal.

Kayode Idowu, spokesperson for Mr Jega, said Ms Ajie was never briefed to file an appeal and that the commission is pursuing the appeal at the court of Appeal. The Court of Appeal Abuja yesterday fixed March 31 for hearing of the appeal.