…Says commission has refused to release election guidelines
…Guideline is available at the commission they are just trying to be funny-EBSIEC
The All Progressives Congress, (APC) Ebonyi state chapter has accused Ebonyi State Independent Electoral Commission of bias in the forthcoming local government election.
Chairman of the party in the state, Pst. Eze Nwachukwu Eze laid the accusation on Thursday, while speaking with The Voice Newspaper.
Nwachukwu said that the commission has refused to give them the election guideline, stating that APC cannot go into election without knowing the rules guiding the exercise.
He said they have gone to EBISEC for more five times to collect the guideline, and they didnt succeed.
A copy of their complain signed by the state chairman which was received by the commission and made available to The Voice, stated that the party APC visited the commission on January 25 and 29, February 3rd , 4th , 11th , and 17th .
It reads: in line with the decision arrived at the interactive meeting with all registered political parties operating in Ebonyi state, held on 23rd of January 2020, where you made it clear that your commission has scheduled a local government chairmanship and councillorship election on 25th April 2020 for the incoming Local Government Administration.
“There, at that meeting, you informed us that the guideline for the election will be ready on the following day being 24th January 2020 and further asked us to come and collect the guideline in the commission. We came the following day as directed and repeated the same visits on 25/01/2020, 29/01/2020, 03/02/2020, 04/02/2020, 11/02/2020, and 17/02/2020 and it was not made available to us till this time of writing.
“We therefore demand that the guideline for 25th April 2020 local government Chairmanship and Councillorship Elections be made available to us to enable our party participate fully in the forthcoming local government election.
We further demand that the said guideline be release to all political parties participating in the forthcoming election and in compliance with the relevant provisions of the law to avoid embarking on an exercise in futility.
Nwachukwu threatened that the party will seek redress in court if the commission failed to comply with the relevant provisions of the law in conducting the exercise.
Noting: Be reminded sir, that our political party will not accept any breach of the law in the conduct of the forthcoming election. We are therefore foretelling the commission to observe the provisions of the electoral laws guiding the conduct of local government election and councillorship elections in Ebonyi state.
He claimed that EBISEC not making available the election guideline is a calculated attempt to scheme some political parties out.
Asked if the party is ready for the election, he said they are ready, adding; buying form and getting candidates are not our problem because its an in-house thing, what we are waiting for is for the guideline to be made available so that we will know the actions to take in order not to default.
On if the party will boycott the April 25, local government election, the chairman said they have communicated the development to the party at the national level and they are waiting for their response.
He hinted that as soon as the response is received, they will call for their SEC meeting where they will unveil their position in the exercise.
In his reaction, EBISEC chairman, Barrister Jossy Eze, said that the guideline is at the commission and that anyone who wants it should visit the commission and get a copy.
There is no need to apply for election guideline because it is a public document and anybody who wants a copy of the guideline should come to the commission and get a copy. APC is just trying to be funny. he noted
