Kaduna LG Election: PDP Calls For Resignation Of SIECOM Chair, Attorney General

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ZAINAB TANIMU
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Kaduna LG Election: PDP Calls For Resignation Of SIECOM Chair, Attorney General

Zainab Tanimu

Kaduna, Northwest Nigeria

The People’s Democratic Party, PDP Kaduna Chapter has called for the resignation of Kaduna state SIECOM Chairman Hajiya Hajara Muhammad

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and Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Kaduna state, Suleiman Shu’aibu, for allegedly planning to manipulate October 19 LG council election.

The Chairman of the party, Edward Percy Masha speaking on behalf of the party at a  press conference held at the Nigeria Union of Journalists NUJ Secretariat Kaduna yesterday alleged that a meeting was held on the 7th October, 2024 at the office of the Attorney General of Kaduna State to discuss ways to discharge the responsibility given by the state government to do all it takes to manipulate the outcome of the 19th October, 2024 council election.
The meeting it stated was between the chairperson of the commission, (SIECOM), the Attorney General of the state and the Speaker of the State House of Assembly, Dahiru Liman.
The party is therefore raising an alarm as it will not according to it allow democracy to be thwarted.
According to the party chairman,
“Today’s conference at the Nigeria Union of Journalists Secretariat is the aftermath of the state house of assembly’s conference.” The party informed.
“We want to tell the public that local government election is meant for the people of the grassroot.
“The people at the grassroot has the right to choose whoever they wish to be their leaders.
“If you deny people of the rights of choosing their leaders at the local government level, you have denied them everything. I will challenge the government of Kaduna state, house of assembly of Kaduna state, SIECOM. We will not accept it, we will challenge it and we will defeat them because we have the people with us.
“Our clarion calls on all the lovers of democracy, all lovers of due process, this is the time to stand for truth.
The party urged the civil society organizations, the lovers of PDP to come out and add their voices.
“The civil society organizations speak out. People who claim to champion democracy are the same people working against it in Kaduna state. We will resist it.
Our prayers:
Part of their prayers are, that
We call on members of the state house of assembly who know fully well that the law did not pass through them to do the needful and to serve immediately the impeachment on the speaker.
“The SlECOM chairman, we call upon her to immediately resign because we have lost confidence in her.
We also call on the Attorney General to resign.
We call on our wonderful members of the party to remain calm as the executive members of PDP are resolute, we will defend their interest at all cost. The general public who always loved us and stand for us, we will not fail you”.

Earlier in a press briefing of Tuesday, PDP had cried out alleging that the officials of the state government was planning to hijack the appointment of both the wards and local government returning/ collation officers for the October 19 council election.

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At the briefing, state chairman Edward Percy Masha made the following points. He  said, “The PDP wishes to call on the Government of Kaduna State and the security agencies that the constitutional task on them is to maintain law and order in the country and our dear state.”

“The electoral laws in Kaduna provides that the Returning Officer shall announce the result and declare the winner of election at the Ward Collation Centre in the case of Councillor and Local Government Collation Centre in the case of Chairman and vice.
 “The Commission shall for the purpose of an election, under this law appoint and designate such officers as may be required provided that no person who is a member of a political party or who has openly expressed support for any candidate shall be so appointed.
“The officers appointed under this section shall exercise such functions and duties as may be specified by the Commission in accordance with the provision of this law and shall not be subject to the direction or control of any person or authority other than the Commission in performance of their functions.”
The bill it claimed did not pass through the house of assembly.

Sequence to PDP’s allegation, the state house of assembly had a press conferenceon Wednesday. lt denied the allegations of planning to manipulate the outcome of the Local Government elections slated for October 19.

The Chairman, House Committee on Information said nothing like that happened. He also refuted the allegation that the house was planning to amend the State Independent Electoral Commission Law (SIECOM).

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According to him, “All we try to do in the amendment was the removal of the use of electronic voting machines due to short notice for the elections”. Adding that, more polling units were created and that the state government never interferes in their affairs.

The PDP still not satisfied with the lawmakers side of the story led to the state chapters presence for yesterday’s press briefing in NUJ secretatiat Kaduna.

The party had called on PDP members of the State House of Assembly to ensure they do the needful towards having credible, free and fair council elections in the state.

 

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