By: Bola Badmus- Lagos
Ahead of the Presidential and National Assembly polls holding across the country this Saturday, the Chairman of the Lagos State chapter of Labour Party (LP), Pastor Mrs. Dayo Ekong, has decried the flagrant exclusion of the party’s National Assembly Candidates on the ballot papers, calling on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to either correct what she described “this anomaly” or reschedule the elections.
Ekong raised this concern on Thursday in a release made available to newsmen in Lagos, saying that this malicious “error” was found out this morning by her and her team of executive members during the routine inspection of election materials.
According to her, the omission of Labour Party for the election for Senate and House of Representatives in Lagos State was discovered during the routine inspection, declaring such as “unacceptable and a wicked way of disenfranchising Lagos electorates.”
“It is unimaginable that for the elections slated for Saturday February 25, Lagos electorate will only vote for the Labour Party Presidential Candidate as INEC made no provision for the election of Party’s Senate and House of Representatives Candidates.
“We cannot accept this as we do not believe that INEC made a mistake but rather, a deliberate, malicious and intentional act by INEC at disenfranchising our supporters from exercising their civic rights which is unacceptable,” the party chieftain said.
“Further checks on the INEC website revealed that the list of names of Lagos Labour Party National Assembly was not uploaded even as the list and court orders for same were duly submitted to INEC and acknowledged.
“You will all recall how we have severally pointed out the bias displayed by the current INEC REC in Lagos State towards our party and his increasing attacks on our Leaders that have constantly pointed out these biases in the past and current onslaught on our party,” she added.
“Is this the result of the culmination of those attacks?” she queried.
The party boss, Ekong, however, called on all stakeholders, foreign observers, lovers of democracy and International Community to quickly wade in and call the electoral umpire to order to do the needful.
“We call on all stakeholders, foreign observers, lovers of democracy and International Community to quickly wade in and call INEC to order to do the needful,” she said.
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