BY DAVID UKA, ABAKALIKI
The Ebonyi State Independent Electoral Commission (EBSIEC) has fixed Aug.15, 2020 as the new date for the Local Government Area (LGA) elections in the state.
The Chairman of the commission Barr. Jossy Eze, who disclosed this in Abakaliki during a meeting with representatives of political parties, security agencies and other stakeholders said that the exercise will be transparent and credible.
Recall that the LG election was formerly fixed for April 25, 2020 but was postponed by the commission due to the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic.He said that the electoral process would therefore not be implemented ‘afresh’ but ‘only revised’.
“We are mindful of the COVID 19 rules and restrictions and have therefore revised our guidelines to be in line with the protocols.
“Political parties are therefore urged to commence activities such as campaigns but they must be in conformity with all COVID-19 protocols.
“The public should also know that recruitment of Ad-hoc staff, enlightenment and other processes that will lead to the election will all be COVDI-19 protocols compliant,” he said.
The EBSIEC chairman said that political parties should ensure peaceful conduct of the polls and use the media and virtual conferencing mechanisms to their advantage.
“We will July 16, re-publish the names of candidates nominated by various political parties for the elections and adopt the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) guidelines as regards de-registered political parties.
“We shall be fair and open to all political parties and enjoin them to be serious and present credible candidates in order to be successful at the polls,” he said.
Responding on behalf of the political parties Mr Micahal Anyim, Organizing Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state thanked the state government for ensuring that the election will ‘eventually’ hold after several months of postponement whileMr James Obasi, state Chairman of the Action Alliance (AA) urged EBSIEC to correct the notion that Ebonyi was a ‘PDP’ state with openness before, during and after the elections.
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