Expdonaloaded News; Lagos LG poll: PDP, APC in war of words

Lagos chapters of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and All Progressives Congress (APC) are at loggerheads over elections into the 20 local government areas and 37 local council development authorities in the state.Indications emerged at the weekend that council polls in Lagos State might not hold anytime soon.The election ought to have been held in October 2014, when the tenure of the last elected councils officials elapsed.
But Lagos State Electoral Commission (LASIEC) said it was waiting for the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to update the voters’ register.
However, six months after the last general elections, Expdonaloaded blog checks indicated that LASIEC might not be in a hurry to hold polls.
A source within the electoral body told Expdonaloaded blog that LASIEC was not thinking about council polls at the moment, thereby fueling speculations that the electoral body may be waiting for directives from the state government before kick-starting the process.
Responding to Expdonaloaded blog inquiries, the source affirmed: “No date has been fixed.”
When asked what was delaying the council poll and when it would possibly hold, he stated: “The question is beyond me to answer. No date has been fixed. It is beyond me.”
Both parties are trading blames as Lagos PDP blamed the ruling APC, for the delay in the council election, saying the latter was afraid of losing the poll.
Publicity Secretary of PDP in the state, Mr. Taofik Gani, said: “In view of the result of the last election, the APC knows it will lose the election. What the governor is doing by delaying the election is to give them time to recuperate from where they lost. It is unfair. It is undemocratic.”
But the APC Publicity Secretary, Mr. Joe Igbokwe, dismissed PDP’s claim, stating that his party would never be afraid of the opposition party in any electoral contest in the state.
Igbokwe said the election would hold when they were ready and not because the PDP said there should be council poll.
“We are preparing. Anyday we are prepared, that is when we will do the local government election. We cannot go into election because PDP said we should hold election. We are the ones that will decide. We are the actors. We are the one in government. They are just spectators. For 15 years, we have been defeating them. What is left of the PDP?” Igbokwe queried.