News
INEC denies shifting Edo, Ondo governorship elections
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has denied reports that it would shift the conduct of the governorship elections in Edo and Ondo states.
It would be recalled that the electoral body had scheduled the elections to hold in September in Edo and October in Ondo State before the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.
INEC was responding to a report by a national newpaper that the Commission will shift the dates of the governorship elections as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.
In a statement by the Chief Press Secretary to the Chairman of the Commission, Rotimi Oyekanmi, INEC described the report as speculative and incorrect, adding that it gives a totally wrong impression.
According to Oyekanmi, the decision to change the dates already announced for the elections is a serious matter, which only the Commission can take.
Read also: DSS denies invading home of Obaseki’s ex-Chief of Staff
Oyekanmi said: “Let me state here that the decision to change the dates already announced for the two elections is a very serious matter. Only the Commission can take that decision and it has to be officially communicated via a press statement.
“However, it appears that what some Editors are really looking for is for INEC to declare that it is postponing the Edo & Ondo governorship elections. But they cannot and should not put words in the Commission’s mouth! There is nowhere in Okoye’s response where he expressly declared that the elections will be postponed.
“So casting the headline:” INEC to Shift Edo, Ondo Guber Polls”, is speculative and incorrect. It gives a totally wrong impression. A lot of people will believe the headline without reading the story”, he said.
Join the conversation
Support Ripples Nigeria, hold up solutions journalism
Balanced, fearless journalism driven by data comes at huge financial costs.
As a media platform, we hold leadership accountable and will not trade the right to press freedom and free speech for a piece of cake.
If you like what we do, and are ready to uphold solutions journalism, kindly donate to the Ripples Nigeria cause.
Your support would help to ensure that citizens and institutions continue to have free access to credible and reliable information for societal development.
INVESTIGATION: In Kwara, multimillion-naira milk processing plant is abandoned, converted to a chicken outlet
After the government spent millions of naira to establish a milk processing plant in Kwara State that would provided jobs...
SPECIAL REPORT: For Sokoto communities, promise of healthcare is akin to death sentence
In this story, ABDULRASHEED HAMMAD delves into the dire realities of Primary Health Care services in Sokoto State, shedding light...
ICYMI…SPECIAL REPORT: NNPCL hides behind PIA to frustrate disclosure, accountability
Nigeria’s major oil company, Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL), in what appears to be a common practice of disregard...
INVESTIGATION: Multi-million naira Ekiti resort center remains uncompleted a decade after
The multimillion-naira project, expected to comprise recreational buildings, now consists of cassava farmland, a bush used for excretion, and a...
SPECIAL REPORT: Torturous experiences of students with disabilities in Oyo tertiary institutions
For students with disabilities in Oyo state-owned tertiary institutions, learning is a torturous and distressing experience, considering the building structures...