By Ayodele Oni
As people of Oyo state trooped out on Saturday for the Local Government Election, Governor ‘Seyi Makinde, has commended them for turning out to vote at the Local Government poll.
The Governor rated the conduct of the election high, stating it compared favourably with elections conducted by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
Despite the Governor’s view, some voters complained of being disenfranchised as many polling units did not witness the exercise until around 2:00 p.m.
The Governor gave his comment after casting his vote at Unit 1, Ward 011, Abayomi Open Space, Iwo Road, Ibadan North East Local Government Area of the state.
While addressing journalists, Governor Makinde said, “For us in Oyo State, it is almost like a given that democracy at the grassroots is what we practice. This is almost our fifth year in office and we are holding local government election for the second time.
“Before we came in, it had always been caretaker administration at the grassroots without the people having a say in who should govern them.
“You can see around also that the people are going about, performing the exercise peacefully and the traffic restriction is being obeyed by the people. So, I will commend our people for coming out to take seriously democracy at that level.”
The Governor, who noted that the security report about the election had been excellent, said those who observed any untoward development should report same to the security agencies.
He praised the democratic process at the grassroots level and emphasized its importance for the people of the state.
Highlighting the progress made by his administration, Governor Makinde noted that since assuming office, the state has held local government elections twice, ensuring that the people had a voice in determining their representatives at the local level.
“I will like to commend our people for coming, and take this civic exercise seriously.
“The security has been excellent truly. I challenge people to compare it with the INEC-organized elections and see how transparent the process is.
“For the people I will say accept the outcome. If you see anything that looks like irregularities as far as this exercise is concerned, bring it up to the authorities and then they will deal with it.”
