INEC Gives Reasons Ondo, Edo Guber Elections Can’t Be Postponed Despite COVID-19

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has said it cannot postpone the governorship elections in Ondo and Edo states in spite of the virulent COVID-19 pandemic.

Festus Okoye, INEC spokesman, said the country was between a rock and a hard place and  was faced with the dillema of choosing its representatives and leaders and also their right to life.

It would be recalled that INEC had fixed the dates for the Edo and Ondo elections as September 19, 2020, and October 10, 2020 respectively.

Conversely, there have been strident calls for the electoral body to shift polls in the two states to a later date due to the upsurge in COVID-19 cases in the country.

Speaking during an ARISE TV programme on Monday, Okoye said the provisions of the constitution inhibits it from unilaterally fixing and rescheduling governorship elections.

He added that though the 1999 constitution gives INEC the power to fix the date for elections, it provides a time frame for doing so.

He noted that the the commission could lose its right to fix election dates if it fails to conduct the two polls within the constitutional time frame.

He said: “Section 178(1) says that it is the function of INEC to fix the date of elections, but Subsection 2 says that an election to the office of the governor shall be conducted not earlier than 150 days and not lesser than 30 days to the expiration of the tenure of the last holder of the office.

“The implication is that the governor of Edo was sworn in on November 11 and we must conduct the governorship election in Edo state on or before October 13, 2020; while that of Ondo state must be conducted on or before January 25, 2021.

“The truth of the matter is that the country is faced with a situation of conflicting rights. The rights of the Nigerian people to elect their representative and also their rights to life, not to go to a polling units and die.

“So, we recognise there will be problems (and) challenges, but we are on point and we are determined to deliver on our mandate. Because, if we fall off outside the constitutional window, the implication is that going forward, the commission does not now have rights and wherewithal to pick the date of election.

“It now falls to the political authority maybe under section 180 of the constitution or under section 305 of the constitution giving the situation that we are in.

“It is not as if that we are insisting, it is the constitution that is insisting that we must proceed with this particular election.”

Okoye added that the timetable and schedule of activities for the two elections will be released on June 1.