Nigeria Newspapers Online

The Kano State Independent Electoral Commission (KANSIEC) says it is ready to conduct a hitch-free and peaceful election across the 44 Local Government Areas of the State.

The commission also warned against illegal activities in and around polling units, stressing that actions including vote buying, underage voting and bribing officials would not be tolerated.

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The commission’s Chairman, Sani Lawan Malunfashi, made this known barely an hour after the State High Court upheld its power to conduct the election.

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He said, “The State High Court is the only Court that has jurisdiction over the affairs of the state and Local governments functions, even when that order was granted, a petition was filed against us that contravenes the content of that order.

“My expectation is that this judgement be respected because the court has the jurisdiction to decide.

“We already had a pre-existing order restraining any individual, group from disrupting our constitutional mandate, from truncating the electoral process.

“In the language of that judgement, KANSIEC has the mandate to conduct, declare election and has requested police as critical stakeholders to maintain security of the entire process.

“As I am speaking to you now, we have less than 24 hours to conduct LG elections in the state. Now the judgement reconstituted the commission, catalysis our already ongoing process until we carried out the mandate to its logical conclusion which tomorrow will be actualised.”

He revealed that political parties that are participating in the process are Action Alliance, ZLP, Accord, AAC, NRM, NNPP out of the 19 the commission earlier anticipated, adding that a major party is already out of the race.

“The major party that petitioned the commission is already out of the race, it refuses to recognise the institution even when we sat with them several times and tried to make them agree with the processes.

“The party refused to submit the names of their candidates and participate in the entire process. By implication, the party is out of the race, they have no ground on this issue. I would like to warn voters against vote buying, bribing of officials, underage voting and other illegal activities.”