One party dominance as apathy, boycott, cloud LG elections
By Moses Adeniyi
The reflection of the dominance of one party has continued to assume stronger dimension in the Country’s political space with the recent local government elections in the South West.
The political gimmicks that outplayed in the Saturday 24th, July, election was much coloured with apathy on the part of the electorates and boycott on the part of political parties.
While such common features of elections in Nigeria as violence and malpractices were not left out, the dominance of apathy and boycott were much entrenched.
In fact, the deep seated apathy and boycott were features that gave the possibilities of malpractice a high frequency.
One Party Dominance
In Ogun State, the election much more took an uncontested dimension as a faction of the major opposition, the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) boycotted the election.
The development had compounded with low voters’ turn out to give the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) a seeming uncontested victory, clearing all the 20 local government councils.
While awaiting the results of the elections into all the 236 councillorship positions, as at the time of filing this report, results released for the Chairmanship positions, declared APC won all the seats.
The Ogun State Independent Electoral Commission (OSIEC) on Sunday declared all the candidates of the APC in the Saturday’s chairmanship election held in the 20 local government areas in the state winners.
The Chairman of the OGSIEC, Babatunde Osibodu, while releasing the results at the commission’s head office in Abeokuta, mentioned that the total number of votes cast in the chairmanship elections in the 20 local government areas in the state were 396, 641.
He was quoted: “I want to say that APC won all the chairmanship seats in the 20 local government areas in the state.”
No less than 12 political parties, including Labour Party, New Nigeria Peoples Party, PDP, were listed as participants in the polls, while a faction of the PDP pulled out barely 24 hours to the election day.
Also, no less than 10 communities in Magboro, in the Obafemi-Owode Local Government Area of Ogun State, had prior to the election threatened to boycott the poll over grievances of the activities of sand dredgers in the area.
The residents had stated that the dredgers damaged the only road which connected them to the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.
Meanwhile, in his position after casting his vote on Saturday at Ita-Osanyin Ward 3 in Iperu, his hometown, the Governor of Ogun State, Prince Dapo Abiodun, had pledged to grant local government authorities autonomy to enable residents enjoy more dividends of democracy.
Abiodun who pledged thay he would ensure the new local government chairmen who would emerge from the just concluded election got autonomy to run their council areas, said the achievement of the local government caretaker committee in the last 20 months showed that when given autonomy, council chairmen would do more at the grassroots.
Mentioning that the caretaker committees ensured that their projects were well funded in line with the constitution, he said: “We will respect the autonomy of the local government in line with the yearnings of the Governors’ Forum. I believe that they are a tier of government that should be given a free hand to run their affairs.
“They are the closest administrative office to the grassroots, they are able to make that impact because they are much closer to the people than any organ of government.”
Lagos
Results from Lagos have continued to show whooping victory for the ruling APC with a number of returning candidates such as those of Ojo, Agege, Ikeja, emerging as the winners of the elections.
It would be recalled that opposition parties had prior to the election on Saturday challenged its possibilities by resorting to the Court to halt the elections from proceeding on Saturday.
Determining the suit which was filed before a Federal High Court in Ikoyi, the Court had refused the request to halt the election of the Chairmen and Councillors into the 57 Local Government Councils and Local Council Development Areas in the State.
A statement by the state Government on Friday, which disclosed that the request was made by 11 political parties, had read: “Honourable Justice Akintayo Aluko made the decision in a ruling delivered this morning, 23rd July 2021 in Suit No FHC/L/CS/596/2021 which was filed by the Alliance of Social Democrats & 10 Other Political Parties against Lagos State Independent Electoral Commission and Lagos State Government.
“Justice Aluko in the ruling upheld the submissions of the Lagos State Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Mr. Moyosore Onigbanjo on behalf of the Lagos State Government.
“The Court declined jurisdiction to hear and determine the suit seeking to stop the conduct of the election coming up tomorrow 24th July 2021.”
Similarly, the Peoples Democratic Party in Ogun State had withdrawn from participating in the poll.
The Chairman of the party in the State, Sikirulai Ogundele, had made the diclosure last Thursday in Abeokuta, alluding that the withdrawal was sequel to a judgment of an Ogun State High Court between him and the Ogun State Independent Electoral Commission.
Ogundele who had dragged OGSIEC to court for dealing with a faction loyal to late Buruji Kashamu of the PDP in the State, had said that: “Sequel to the judgement of the Ogun State High Court, Isabo in suit no M/55/2021 between Sikirulai Ogundele VS OGSIEC, affirming the consent judgement of the Federal High Court, Abuja as delivered on 22nd June, 2021, the Ogun State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party under the able Chairmanship of Dr Sikirulai Ogundele hereby make the following pronouncement:
“That consequence upon the said judgement in suit M/55/2021, Ogun State PDP withdraws its participation in the Ogun State Local Government Election which is scheduled for Saturday 24th July, 2021.
“That all candidates of the party who have been earlier screened by the party to contest in the LG election and all our teeming party members and loyal supporters are enjoined to remain calm and sustain their confidence in the leadership of the party.”
Apathy
The apathy which greeted the polls has raised concern of the diminishing interest of Nigerians in political participation in the Country.
Lamenting the trend, a former member of the Lagos State House of Assembly and two-term Chairman, Lagos Mainland Local Government, Mr Oladele Adekanye, had on Saturday said voters’ apathy is dangerous for democracy in the Country.
He was quoted: “Apathy in elections has never been a solution to people’s disenchantment. Looking at the centrality of grassroots governance and connection between politics and economy, it remains paradoxical that people abandon the most important polls.
“Whatever the frustrations and reasons to be disinterested in the process, people are destroying themselves with their continuous apathy in electoral process.
“The LASIEC officials were on ground quite early, but the turnout was not impressive, considering the fact that this is the government nearest to the people.
“The gains in participating in local government administration are so obvious. I think there is the need for us to talk to ourselves. I believe some of our people should learn from this.
“People who boycott elections are killing themselves. Some of these attitudes might be antithetical to what they want. Even when the sensitisation reached them, some people have come into the conclusion that their votes would not matter in any case.
“They have come into the conclusion that it is a waste of time. They say politicians know who they want to put there, and that could be a mistake.
“When you stay back, believing that a choice had already been made, you do not have the moral, or even political and civil rights, to begin to fight over performance of those people that have been given the opportunity to administer.
“It is better to get involved, even if you thought any manipulation will happen. It is always better to perform your civil rights first, and later expose anyone who tries to play some funny games.
“But even in such circumstance, people could still solve some of their problems by observing, following campaigns and choosing responsible and reliable people during elections, rather than boycott.
“Whatever have been your frustrations in the past can be corrected by more responsive and more responsible set of people at the helms of affairs that you voted for.
“People should add a more positive attitude to solving the problems than resorting to fate. The best solution to the problems of apathy is good governance. When people see good governance, they will be encouraged and it will give them hope and be willing to participate.”
Many have continued to link the deepening voters’ apathy in the Country recently, to worsening economic conditions which have left so many depressed with sensations of disgust to political participation, particularly voting. Shunning polling boots have become rife in recent time.
