No plan to shift July 22 council polls, says LASIEC

The Lagos State Independent Electoral Commission (LASIEC) says it has no plan to postpone the July 22 council polls.

The Chairman of LASIEC, retired Justice Ayotunde Phillips, said on Saturday that rather than shift the election, preparations had been intensified to ensure that the exercise was successfully conducted.

The commission is also stepping up awareness to mobilise voters for the elections, she said in a statement by Mr Dapo Olatunde, the Director of Publicity of LASIEC.

She explained that LASIEC had just concluded the training of its electoral officers on effective election management and administration as part of the preparations.

In addition, the ex-Chief Judge of the state, said ad-hoc staffers were being trained on how to discharge their duties efficiently during the election.

Phillips promised that the commission would “go extra mile” to meet the expectations of the people of credible elections on July 22.

On the litigation against the commission by the Labour Party over its decision not to use card readers, she said:“LASIEC will have to wait for court pronouncement for next line of action.

According to her, the commission is also awaiting the court’s verdict on the suit instituted against it by National Conscience Party (NCP) over “imposition of administrative fees”.

Phillips noted that the party did not obtain the nomination forms for its candidates as a result of the fees and did not also participate in the recent screening and validation of candidates.

The chairman urged the electorate to participate actively in the political process, saying it is through participation that they can elect quality leadership at the grassroots.