INEC Fixes Date For Rerun In 14 Local Governments In Kogi State Nigeria.

The Kogi state election petition tribunal has ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to conduct rerun elections in 14 local government areas of the state.

The state’s Resident Electoral Commission (REC), Mallam Haliru Pai, made this known on Thursday, February 4 during a stakeholders meeting.
Pai said the commission will on February 20 conduct rerun election in 1, 988 polling units in 14 local government areas of the state.
He said the rerun election will hold in two senatorial districts of the state, Kogi Central and Kogi East. He said the All Progressives Congress (APC) will not be participating in the Kogi Central and Kogi East senatorial election because of the court ruling that barred the two candidates and the party from contesting.
According to him, the APC will not also take part in the federal constituency election into Ogoro/Okene federal constituency following a court ruling. He said it is only the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate that is qualified for the re-run election.
The REC while speaking on the Kogi state House of Assembly rerun also disclosed that the APC and its candidates will not also part take in the Ofu and Ankpa 1 rerun, but would be eligible to participate in Idah, Dekina/Biraidu and Okura rerun.
Pai said the rerun election in Idah will be conducted in one polling unit, Ogegele ward, unit 003. He further hinted that the commission will be conducting the exercise with about 9, 816 adhoc staff including youth corpers, security officers and other personnel.
The REC promised the resident of a level playing field, assuring that the rerun election will be free and fair. He explained that the reason for the rerun election in 14 local government areas of the state is because of non-conduct of primary by one of the parties, “which led to litigation.”
The commission as part of efforts to get our electoral processes right recently embark on relationship renewal with important partners. The commission hasreleased dates for rerun elections in about 16 states across the country.
The states include Gombe, Kaduna, Adamawa, Kogi, Niger, Rivers, Abia, Anambra, Benue, Plateau, Akwa Ibom, Cross River, among others. The dates were fixed on Monday, February 1, 2016 after series of consultations with major stakeholders in the electoral process and public interest on the subject.
In a related development, INEC in a statement issued by its secretary, Augusta Ogakwu, on Tuesday, February 2, disqualified fresh candidates from participating in the forthcoming Senatorial and House of Representatives rerun elections in Nigeria as the commission scheduled February 13 and March 19 for the polls.


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