Kwara PDP vows to challenge legality of LG transition committees

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Kwara State has said it will challenge the legality of the inauguration of Transition Implementation Committees (TICs) in the 16 local government councils in the state.

The chairman of PDP in the state, Mr Iyiola Oyedepo, made this known on Sunday in a statement issued in Ilorin, after a meeting of stakeholders of the party.

“We believe that all forms of illegality committed by the ruling APC should be challenged in the court of law.

“When the state administration illegally extended the tenure of Offa Local Government council administration, we quickly challenged it in court.

“It was the decision of the government to nominate caretaker administration into the 16 councils of the state that rendered nugatory the action taken,” Oyedepo said in the statement.

According to the chairman, the implementation of TICs is  illegal and this informed the party’s  resort  to legal process.

“The decision of the state government to appoint the Transition Implementation Committees (TICs) to be in charge of our local councils is unconstitutional and therefore illegal.

“Legal challenge as an instrument of political resistance in opposition politics was part of what was discussed at the stakeholders’ meeting.

“We are armed with plethora of legal authorities that can be used to effectively stop them.

“Recently, the National Assembly, through the Speaker of the House of Representatives, also took a stand against the existence of undemocratic structure in  local government administration in Nigeria,” Oyedepo added.

Oyedepo said the party had  perfected legal papers and assembled  a team  of lawyers to  challenge the implementation of the TICs  in court.

He  appealed to PDP members to be prepared as the state government might decide to hold the local government elections before the end of April.

“The consensus opinion among our party members in the 16 local councils of Kwara State is that we should participate in the exercise.

“Apart from the possibility of winning some local government areas in that election, our participation will activate our party.

“But if we must participate, we should not allow any crisis arising from nominations of chairmen and councillors  for the elections,” the chairman added.

He appealed to party members to adopt consensus method in choosing candidates for the elections to eliminate wrangling and crisis among members.

“As much as possible, nominations should be by consensus and nobody’s ambition should be strong enough to tear the party apart,” Oyedepo said.

He said PDP would soon embark on sensitisation, mobilisation and organisation initiative through the media to effectively mobilise the people of the state.

“We shall sensitise the people, then mobilise  and organise the sensitised members of the public.

“With this, we shall make the people believe and take the ownership of our agenda,” Oyedepo said.