The opposition All Progressives Congress (APC) in Sokoto State has made its stand known ahead of the forthcoming Local Government election, saying the State Independent Electoral Commission (SIEC) lacks transparency.
State Chairman of APC in Sokoto, Alhaji Isa Sadiq Achida at a press conference on Sunday said friends and associates of governor Aminu Tambuwal are those managing the SIEC, doing his bidding, hence, APC, though, a winning party any day does not have confidence in the Commission to participate in the election.
Achida said, the situation was so bad that officials of Sokoto SIEC are card carrying members of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) who are always carrying out the governor’s bidding.
He said: “Recent happenings in the preparations for the forthcoming LG polls in the state have glaringly confirmed our position . When the state government announced the belated decision to conduct the local government elections in the State, we expected the electoral body to arrange consultative meetings with political parties for the successful conduct of the elections .This, they refused to do because we feel that they are working with some select political parties for their own ulterior motives.
“To our dismay however, the Commission went alone and prepared their own time table, convenient to them and their paymasters, which was sent to us only for information.
The party Chairman stressed that SIEC from all indications has denied to create an atmosphere for participatory democracy to thrive, stating that there was no need for APC to drag its integrity in the mud.
“One would have expected that a just Umpire like SIEC should have invited political parties for their inputs before coming up with an election time table . This is a further indication of their lack of fairness and their unwillingness to provide a level playing ground for political parties wishing to participate in the elections.
“In the light of these circumstances and after due consultations with all stakeholders of our party in the State , the Sokoto State Chapter of the APC has resolved not to participate in the forthcoming local governments elections.
“In addition to the atmosphere of injustice created by these developments , we are also constrained to participate in the elections because local government system in the State is already a total failure.
“We are all witnesses to the dismal performances of the local governments in the State and the bastardization of the local government system.
APC expressed regret that the Aminu Tambuwal led administration has balkanised the Local Government system in Sokoto when the tenure of elected officials was reduced from three to two years to serve the governor’s whims and caprices.
“Another act of impunity by the State Government is the continuous renewal of the tenure of appointed Local Government Sole Administrators in contravention of the limits permitted by law.
“As the popular saying goes, injustice anywhere, is a threat to justice everywhere. With the tremendous support the APC enjoys in Sokoto State, we cannot afford to drag the good name of our party in the muddy waters by associating ourselves with failure; because even though the APC is sure to win the local government elections , the present state administration is such that will not allow them to function effectively.
“The APC in Sokoto State wishes to use this medium to call on all its members and supporters across the state, not to participate or have anything to do with the conduct of the elections, in the interest of our party and the principles of democracy which our party represents”, he concluded.
