Omoragbon punctures INEC’s excuse, says N189.2b 2019 budget based on increased number of parties …Defence shameful

Success Damian:

National Conscience Party (NCP) flag bearer in the forthcoming gubernatorial election in Edo State, Pastor Peters Osawaru Omoragbon, has punctured the excuse giving by Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for delisting what it called non performing parties.

Omoragbon made the statements in a press release titled: The Law as the Hope of the Common.

He said in 2015, INEC got 120billion Naira, and in 2019 requested and got 189.2 billion Naira, to conduct elections in those years “The reasons it gave for the increased budget, was the rise in the numbers of political parties. So, is INEC telling Nigerians that we cannot fund election process in Nigeria, where a commission like the NDDC could expend 45 billion naira in 4 months during a period where there was total lockdown world-wide? 

“Is it therefore not an absurdity for the commission to disenfranchise millions of Nigerians just because it is too lazy to perform its constitutional duties to the electorates? Omoragbon queried.

He told his teaming supporters to remain calm as seeks legal solution to the issue “I appeal to our teeming supporters and independent voters to remain law abiding and eschew violence as we trust in the Rule of Law.

“Our campaign will continue with all fervency without let or hindrance in accordance with section 40 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

He said INEC defence is shameful “It is a shame to learn from INEC’s defence against our originating summons by confessing that it was incapable of conducting elections for large numbers of political parties in Nigeria as a basis for preventing the NCP and myself from contesting in the Edo State governorship election. Hear what INEC stated in its watery defence in paragraph 17 of its affidavit to our originating summons:

“That the proliferation of political parties poses a major challenge to electoral administration in Nigeria with most of them remaining comatose after registration, but their presence in the register of political parties in Nigeria only makes the jobs of INEC ALMOST impossible to perform seamlessly.

Quoting  ACE Electoral Knowledge Network, he said INEC is the second-largest government agency in Nigeria, in terms of its staff strength; it is ranked second to the Nigerian Police Force. As at December 2013, the Commission’s staff strength was approximately 14,000 full time staff members across the country. The commission also appoints ad hoc staff for election duty (about 300, 000 were recruited during the 2011 elections).

Omoragbon said “It is worrisome for a commission that is funded Directly by a federation account with unlimited powers and unfettered access to fund to employ as much staff as it desires to openly make such undermining confession about multi-party democracy and call it proliferation. It is insulting to fathom the thinking of INEC when it was responsible in the first place for the registration of the parties.”