An Ondo State High Court sitting in Akure has barred the State Independent Electoral Commission (ODIEC) from conducting the local government elections scheduled for December 1.
In a suit marked Ak/195/2018 and filed by the Idowu Otetubi led faction of the state’s chapter of the All Progressives Congress, APC against the party’s chairman in the state, Ade Adetimehin, the State Executive Committee of the party, the APC as well as the Ondo State Independent Electoral Commission (ODIEC), the applicant had prayed that the court should restrain the 4th defendant which is ODIEC from accepting any lists of candidates from the Adetimehin led faction of the party ahead of the December 1 local government polls.
Justice Kolawole of the Ondo State High Court after hearing the submission of the applicant’s counsel, Tolu Babaleye, granted the prayer of the applicants and gave an order of interim injunction restraining ODIEC from conducting the LG polls pending the determination of the case.
“The 4th defendants respondent is retrained in the interim from entertaining, honouring or welcoming any list of candidate emanating from any purported primary election conducted by the 1st defendant-led State Executive Committee for the 3rd defendant for the purpose of the local government election in Ondo State slated for 1st December, 2018 pending the determination of the motion on notice filed by the claimants,” the court ruled.
The motion on notice was subsequently adjourned for hearing till Monday, September 17.
With this development, more crisis seems to be in the offing for the Ondo State chapter of the All Progressives Congress, APC, as the party struggles with series of challenges battling it.
Apart from the recent indirect/direct primary tussle which has further polarized the party in the state, the party is now faced with litigation ahead of the local government election scheduled to hold on the 1st of December.
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