IPAC withdraws from LG election in Osun

By Deborah Oladejo, Osogbo

The Inter-Party Advisory Council (IPAC), an umbrella body of all political parties in Osun State, has announced its boycott of the forthcoming Local Government election in the state.

Briefing journalists in Osogbo on Monday, the State Chairman of IPAC, Victor Akande, said the council decided to boycott the election due to a lack of confidence in the Chairman of the Osun State Independent Electoral Commission (OSSIEC), Barrister Ashim Abioye.

Akande alleged that the OSSIEC chairman has perfected plans to use members of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as electoral officers during the election slated for February next year.

According to him, the council expected up-to-date information from the commission ahead of the election but has instead received inadequate communication, alleging that the PDP in the state is intentionally creating avenues for crisis to scare people away.

His words: “When Governor Ademola Adeleke submitted the name of a card-carrying member of his party, PDP, Barrister Ashim Abioye, to the rubber-stamped House of Assembly for confirmation as the Chairman of the Osun State Independent Electoral Commission (OSSIEC) in November 2023, we vehemently opposed it.

“Our position then, as the Osun chapter of IPAC, was that Abioye is not legally fit to conduct free, fair, and credible local government elections in Osun.

“We opposed the brazen imposition of Abioye as OSSIEC umpire as he was Adeleke’s Senior Special Assistant on Legal Matters at the time.

“Earlier this year, Abioye invited us to the headquarters of OSSIEC in Osogbo where we expressed our reservations about the February 22, 2025 council election, and he pledged his allegiance to protect his integrity and promised not to disappoint us.

“We have reliably gathered that Abioye has perfected plans to use PDP members as electoral officers during the election, which we all know what it means.

“His intention is to trap us into conducting our parties’ primary elections without disclosing the amount each party will pay, which will, of course, lead to efforts in futility after announcing an exorbitant fee.

“We expected up-to-date information from Abioye as done by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) but instead have consistently received information about the Local Government election from the PDP.

“We find it convenient to say that the PDP-led administration in the state is intentionally creating avenues for crisis to scare our people away from the forthcoming council election, as only a secured mind will have the courage to go out to vote for their choice.

“One of us, NNPP, that earlier submitted an intention letter for its party’s primary election has withdrawn the letter because we realized no good thing can come out of Abioye, who is Governor Adeleke’s stooge.

“It is on these notes that we resolved, after deliberations with our parties’ members, to back out of the forthcoming Local Government election in the state.”

According to the IPAC chairman, political parties involved in the boycott include: Action Alliance, African Democratic Congress, Accord Party, Social Democratic Party, African Action Congress, New Nigeria Peoples Party, Allied Peoples Movement, and the Peoples Redemption Party.

Others are All Progressives Grand Alliance, Zenith Labour Party, Action Democratic Party, Action Peoples Party, Labour Party, Boot Party, National Rescue Movement, and Young Progressives Party.

“We await the credibility of the poll involving only the Peoples Democratic Party,” he added.

It would be recalled that the Chairman of the Osun State Independent Electoral Commission (OSSIEC) has fixed February 22, 2025, for the conduct of the Local Government election in the state.