It appears to be a deliberate strategy by the APC-led federal administration and its ‘tomboy’ accomplice, INEC, to deny the people of Ibadan North Federal Constituency representation at the National Assembly.
Nearly a year has passed since the demise of Hon. Musiliu Olaide Akinremi (Jagaban), may his soul rest in peace—the lawmaker who represented Ibadan North Federal Constituency in the Green Chamber of the National Assembly.
Yet, INEC has continued to deprive the citizens of this constituency of any form of representation. Despite the electoral law being clear and unambiguous about the timeline for replacing a lawmaker in the event of incapacitation, resignation, appointment, or death, INEC has blatantly ignored the provisions of the law and shown no genuine intent to conduct a bye-election to fill the vacant seat.
I am also deeply concerned about the unusual silence of my brother, the distinguished Senator representing Oyo South, Barrister Sarafadeen Abiodun Alli.
As a vibrant grassroots political juggernaut, a notable attorney, and the Chairman of the Senate Committee on INEC, it is expected that he would have used his influence to urge INEC to act promptly.
The Senator S.A. Alli I know would never have allowed such a prolonged vacuum in representation. Sadly, that has not been the case.
What makes this even more disappointing is that Senator S.A. Alli hails from Ibadan North Federal Constituency.
He, more than anyone else, should understand the impact of this lack of representation—how much the constituency has been shortchanged over the past year since Representative Akinremi’s passing.
What kind of democracy are we practicing if the electoral umpire can so flagrantly disregard its mandate to ensure that every citizen has a voice in the National Assembly?
We hereby call on civil society organizations, the media, and human rights activists across the country to rise to the occasion and mount pressure on INEC to immediately announce the election timetable to fill all existing vacancies—not only in Ibadan North, but in every other constituency where seats remain unfilled.
Ismaila Osuolale Ashipa writes from Ibadan North.
