The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Osun State has said that the Osun State Independent Electoral Commission (OSSIEC) is making it hard for other parties to take part in the local government elections coming up on February 22, 2025.
APC said this after the head of OSSIEC, Hashim Abioye, shared information that they believe puts their candidates at a disadvantage.
A while ago, OSSIEC said that some political parties did not properly put forward their candidates. These parties include APC, Allied Peoples Movement (APM), and Action Peoples Party (APP).
On Wednesday, speaking to journalists in Osogbo, Hashim Abioye said that almost all 18 parties nominating candidates broke some rules. He said these parties did not correctly nominate candidates for chairmanship in seven local government areas.
But on Friday, Osun APC Chairman, Tajudeen Lawal, said OSSIEC did a poor job of managing the nomination process for positions like local government chairman, vice-chairman, and councillor.
Lawal explained that OSSIEC gave a 48-hour deadline for correcting mistakes in nominating candidates in nine local government areas. These areas are Atakumosa-West, Ede-South, Egbedore, Ife-Central, Ifedayo, Isokan, Olorunda, and Oriade.
Even though the APC tried to meet this deadline, Lawal said OSSIEC closed its offices early at 2:15 pm on September 19, 2024, making it impossible to submit the needed documents.
Lawal said attempts to reach OSSIEC were unsuccessful as no officials were available to handle the necessary paperwork.
The party chairman blamed OSSIEC’s own mistakes for the irregularities. He also said OSSIEC rushed to make things public without checking facts properly.
Lawal also said OSSIEC did not have a Public Relations Officer to help address concerns, with Abioye reportedly handling all tasks himself.
He questioned OSSIEC’s fairness, pointing out that Abioye is known to be with the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and had previously run for a position with them in 2023.
APC has even gone to court to question Abioye’s appointment, saying there is a conflict of interest.
Lawal was surprised that OSSIEC closed its offices early a day after giving a 48-hour deadline for fixing nomination issues.
He claimed that OSSIEC’s actions seem aimed at stopping APC’s participation in the election.
Lawal also raised concerns about the delayed election guidelines. He said APC’s repeated requests for certified copies of these guidelines were either ignored or rejected.
In one case, OSSIEC didn’t acknowledge a formal request sent via courier, making APC suspicious of bias.
Lawal added that under Abioye, OSSIEC might not be able to conduct fair elections.
He warned that APC would use all legal means to ensure their candidates are not treated unfairly by what he called a compromised electoral body.
“We suspect OSSIEC under Hashim is not acting independently. This is based on the issues we have highlighted so far,” Lawal stated.