The Resident Electoral Commissione, REC, in Lagos State, Olusegun Agbaje, has said the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) will continue with its logistics arrangement for the elections commencing this Saturday.
Recall that Justice Chukwuejekwu Aneke of the Federal High Court in Lagos, on Monday, restrained INEC from engaging the Lagos State Parks Management Committee, or any of its commercial bus drivers in the distribution of election materials for the February 25 and March 11 polls.
The parties filed the suit, marked FHC/L/CS/271/2023, alongside their governorship candidates in Lagos — Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour (LP); Funsho Doherty (ADC), and Wale Oluwo (Boot Party).
The Lagos State Parks Management Committee is headed by transport union leader, Musiliu Akinsanya, alias MC Oluomo, who is a member of the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC.
Justice Aneke’s restraining order on Monday followed an application for interlocutory injunction filed by Labour Party, LP; African Democratic Congress, ADC, and Boot Party, BP.
INEC is the sole defendant in the suit.
The judge granted the interim interlocutory injunction after listening to the plaintiffs’ lawyer, Abass Ibrahim.
In the affidavit filed in support of the application, the lawyer averred that the Lagos State Government, in April 2022, abolished the activities of the National Union of Road Transport Workers in the state.
In place of the NURTW, of which MC Oluomo was a chieftain, the state government set up the Lagos State Parks Management Committee to oversee the affairs of commercial bus drivers, motor parks and garages in the state.
However, reacting to the ruling, the REC, Agbaje, said he was not aware of the lawsuit as he hadn’t been served.
He added, “Nobody is dealing with Oluomo here. I said it several times. We are not dealing with Oluomo.
“The owners of the vehicles are at the local government level.
“Anybody who says we are dealing with Oluomo should provide the evidence. And we don’t have any problem with mobilisation in Lagos State.
“We don’t have any challenge at all in INEC Lagos State. All the arrangement is going on smoothly. We are not aware of any court judgment because nobody served us any court papers.
“The issue of Oluomo does not arise in the first instance. We are going on with our arrangement and we don’t have anything to fear.”
