A federal High Court in Lagos may deny the Lagos State Independent Electoral Commission (LASIEC) access to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) register for Lagos voters ahead of the July 24 chairmanship and council polls.
Justice Chukwujekwu Aneke gave LASIEC seven days to show cause why it should not grant a prayer by an All Progressives Congress (APC) chairmanship aspirant, Raheem Rasaki Alani, seeking to restrain INEC from making the register for Lagos’ 20 Local Government Areas (LGA) available.
The judge made the ruling following Alani’s June 24 ex parte motion argued through his counsel, Tope Alabi, seeking four reliefs.
He argued in his affidavit of urgency that LASIEC ought to conduct the election in accordance with the “constitutionally-recognised” LGAs in Lagos, and not based on the 57 Local Council Development Areas (LCDAs) created by the state, that it intends to use.
“I know that the 57 LCDAs wherein the 2nd defendant intends to conduct elections are a product of the unconstitutional balkanisation of the 20 constitutionally-recognised LGAs in Lagos State,” he said.
He therefore sought an order stopping LASIEC from preparing for the polls based on the 57 LCDAs.
In a bench ruling, Justice Aneke held: “Being an election matter and the process is ongoing, I shall give the defendant-respondent seven days within which the defendant shall show cause why the order should not be made against them.
“This case is adjourned till Wednesday, July 14, 2021. All parties to be served.”
