The Edo State House of Assembly has passed a resolution calling on the state Independent Election Commission (EDSIEC) to fix a date to conduct the local government election in Esan North-East Local Government Area of Edo without further delay.
The resolution was sequel to a matter of urgent public importance brought before the House at plenary on Tuesday in Benin by Mr Emmanuel Okoduwa representing Esan North-East constituency
Okoduwa noted that EDSIEC conducted elections into the 18 local government areas of the state on April 20, 2013, adding that the commission cancelled the election of Esan North-East on the ground that there was violence.
He said that a rescheduled poll in the local government conducted on April 24 and adjudged free, fair and credible by observers was also cancelled by EDSIEC.
“After almost three months of the cancellation, EDSIEC has not shown any willingness and readiness to conduct fresh election in Esan North-East Local Government Council,’’ he said.
The lawmaker said that the absence of a democratically elected chairman and councillors had hindered and stalled the social, economic and political development in the local government area.
In his contribution, Mr Kingley Ehigiamusor, representing Igueben Constituency, said that Section 7 of the 1999 Constitution as amended, was very clear on the conduct of local government election.
Mr Abdulrazak Momoh, representing Etsako West, described the alleged unwillingness of the commission to conduct the election as ‘oppression’.
Other lawmakers who spoke on the issue expressed sympathy with EDSIEC on its inability to conclude the local government election in the state.
The House urged the commission to fix a date to conduct the poll in Esan North-East Local Government Area and other wards where elections were inconclusive.
The Speaker Uyigue Igbe directed that clean copies of the resolution be sent to the Chairman of EDSIEC and the governor for immediate action.