Jegede says holding Ondo election as scheduled a breach of Electoral Act

Mr. Eyitayo Jegede (SAN), who was declared authentic candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for the Saturday’s gubernatorial election in Ondo State, has called for a four-week extension of the election date.

Jegede who was accompanied by mammoth crowd, on Thursday to staged a protest march to the state Headquarters of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), insisted it was necessary the commission shift the election by four weeks.

According to the PDP governorship candidate, the call was to make sure that the election was held in full obedience to the provisions of Section 34, 45 and 74 of the Electoral Act 201o as amended.

In his letter he submitted to the INEC chairman, Mahmood Yakubu on the state of things concerning the election, Jegede argued that since the Electoral Act stipulated that names of candidates should be published 30 days before the election, it would be proper if INEC start counting his days from November 23, which was the date the Court of Appeal gave judgment in his favour.

He said this would also allow the party to submit a list of his party’s agents in good time before the election as provided for by the Electoral Act 2010 which stipulates that each party should make list of their party agents available to the commission, 14 days before the day of election.

He went further to argue that the name Biyi Poroye, the defeated PDP factional chairman, submitted could not be viewed as coming from the PDP since the appellate court judgment was against the faction, meaning all they did had become a nullity.

Read also: Ondo poll: Jegede wins again as S-Court throws out appeal against him

He said, “It follows from the foregoing that any list of agents purportedly forwarded by one Poroye and his fellow pretenders who had been illegally parading themselves as the state executive members of the PDP, Ondo State cannot be regarded as authentic. As it is, PDP has not forwarded the list of its agents to the commission.

“Whichever way one may look at the situation on ground, the governorship election of Ondo State slated for November 26, if conducted, will undoubtedly be in breach of the Electoral Act 2010 as amended.

“It is in light of the foregoing that I request you to differ the governorship election for Ondo State for at least 30 days so as not to conflict the election in flagrant violation of the Electoral Act 2010 as amended.”

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