The Benue State Independent Electoral Commission, (BSIEC), has announced a postponement of the proposed November 30th, 2019 Council elections in the state till the first quarter of year 2020.
Chairman of the Commission, Tersoo Loko made the announcent during the Commission’s Stakeholders Forum which held Monday, at the George Akume Hall, Local Government Service Commission, Makurdi.
The BSIEC Chairman said it became necessary to shift the election following glaring contradictions on the timetable released by the Commission on September 23, 2019.
“The import of this meeting is to inform stakeholders on preparations so far, to also intimate them that the Commission has taken note of the contradiction on the timetable released on September 23, 2019, in respect to Section 30 of Electoral Act, 2010 (as amended) which has provided for 90 days notice of election and Section 15(2) of the Benue State Electoral Law, 2012(as amended) which has provided for twenty- one days notice, which conflicts with Section 30 of the Electoral Act, 2010”, he said.
He announced that in view of the shortcomings realised from its timetable, the Commission has postponed it’s election date from November 30, 2019 to the first quarter of year 2020 to enable it make further clarifications on the provisions of the existing Electoral Laws.
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Loko promised that the Commission in pursuant of the requirements of its mandate, shall serve a new “Notice of Election” and present its new timetable to stakeholders just as he sued for the collaboration of political parties and stakeholders in achieving credible polls.
In their reactions, stakeholders from across political parties said BSIEC was sitting on a time bomb and the Commission has just saved itself from imminent litigations as the earlier timetable was jaundicely flawed with lacunas that every political party would have latched on to make a mess of the Commission in court.
The various speakers commended the Chairman and his Commission for having a rethink and requested that going forward, as key participants and political parties they should be carried along adequately and the fees of N300,000 for chairmanship candidates, as well as N200, 000 for councillorship nominees be reviewed downward or removed completely, same way INEC does not charge political parties separate fees.