17 out of the 18 registered political parties registered by the Independent Electoral Commission, INEC, submitted the list and particulars of their nominated candidates for the governorship election in Ondo State, using the INEC dedicated portal as at deadline day yesterday.
The election comes up on Saturday, 10th October, 2020.
The Commission met yesterday, 28th July and deliberated on the conduct of party primaries for the Ondo State Governorship Election and a number of other issues, including the Nasarawa Central State Constituency Election scheduled for 8th August 2020, and preparations for the Edo Governorship Election holding on 19th September 2020.
INEC’s National Commissioner and Chairman, Information and Voter Education Committee, Festus Okoye, confirmed in a statement that all the 17 political parties that gave the Commission the requisite statutory notice, conducted their primaries for the purposes of nominating candidates for the Governorship Election.
The Commission opened its dedicated nomination portal on 21st July and some of the political parties that conducted their primaries before the 25th July deadline seized the opportunity and uploaded the list and particulars of their nominated candidates ahead of the cut-off time of 6.00 p.m. on 28th.
The list and personal particulars of the candidates as submitted by the 17 political parties will be uploaded on INEC’s website and published in its State Office in Akure, Ondo State on Friday 31st July.
Mr. Okoye said this was in compliance with section 31(3) of the Electoral Act 2010 (as amended). The list will also be published on the Commission’s social media platforms on the same day.
By section 31 (5) & (6) of the Electoral Act, a person who has reasonable grounds to believe that any information given in the affidavit or any of the documents submitted by any of the candidates is false, may file a suit in court seeking a declaration that such information is false. If the court determines that the information is false, the court shall issue an order disqualifying the candidate from contesting the election.
The INEC Commissioner urged members of the public to take an active part in the vetting of the list and particulars of nominated candidates to enhance transparency in the nomination processes.
