There has been a lot of backlash since INEC mentioned its intention to work with the chairman of road transport workers.
Lagosians have had an unfavorable experience with the union, and this has raised a number of contentious questions.
People want to know why INEC wants to use the union for the upcoming election.
The residents of Lagos are terrified by the fact that the election materials should not be compromised in the process of distribution by the committee.
INEC (the Independent National Electoral Commission) says it has no option but to engage the Lagos State Park Management Committee, led by Musiliu Akinsanya (aka MC Oluomo), to distribute election materials and move personnel in the state on election day.
Olusegun Agbaje, the INEC Resident Electrical Commissioner in Lagos State, announced this decision on Tuesday, February 6.
He was at the meeting of the Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES) held at the INEC office.
As you may recall, the state’s governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, banned the Nation Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) and the Road Transport Employers Association of Nigeria (RTEAN) from operating in Lagos State and established park management committees to oversee the operation.
Read more: Naira Scarcity: Sanwo-Olu Pours Cold Water On Lagosians
Why Mc Oluomo?
Responding to questions about the controversies surrounding the choice of the park committee led by MC Oluomo’s to distribute election materials, Mr. Agbaje stated that the commission was not concerned about Akinsanya.
INEC is concerned about individual drivers and vehicle owners meeting the high volume of logistics needs for the elections.
“There is a ban on NURTW and RTEAN; we are only left with the park system and NARTO (the National Association of Road Transport Owners).
“NARTO is not even able to meet up with 40 percent of our vehicle requirement for this election.
“The commissioner in Lagos State does not have any option other than to use the park management system.
“We are not dealing with MC Oluomo; we are dealing with the park managers.
“Individual people that have vehicles are those we are going to use,” he said.
No Compromise
To douse the worries, he assured Nigerians that the movement of electoral personnel and materials would be monitored by security agencies, party agents, and observers.
“At the CBN (Central Bank of Nigeria), where they are going to move our materials, there will be security agencies and party agents, including the military, to monitor and escort these vehicles from the CBN to the Local Government Area.”
“So I don’t see how this can compromise the election in any way.
“Our politicians should see the peculiarity in Lagos state. We cannot work with banned NURTW or RTEAN.”
As the election approaches, Nigerians are on high alert to ensure that the election results are not compromised or tampered with.
