There was commotion on Friday at three Local Government Areas namely Ojo, Apapa and Mushin as Mr. Musiliu Akinsanya (aka M.C. Oluomo) led Lagos State Park and Garage Management Agency (LSPGMA) threatened and stopped Independent National Electoral Committee, INEC accredited vehicles from leaving the Councils’ offices with election materials.
Sunrise reports that this followed the final verdict by a Lagos High Court which ordered that the election management body INEC, must not use Oluomo’s led transport union for the distribution of all polling materials in Lagos State.
Recall that the INEC and the National Association of Road Transport Owners, NARTO, signed a Memorandum of Understanding, MOU, on the logistics in the movement of election materials.
Confirming the development, the Lagos State Chapter Chairman of NARTO, Alhaji Kayode Odunowo said that he got reports from drivers in the three locations of harassment and threat to members of NARTO by members of Lagos Park and Garage Management Committee.
Odunowo also said that despite the presence of Police officers at these location member of the Park and Garage Committee still went ahead to stop drivers from moving materials out of those locations.
He told Vanguard that the matter has been reported to the Executives members of NARTO adding he was awaiting their instructions before he takes action.
Speaking in similar vein, the Lagos State NARTO Task Force Chairman, Comrade Ridwan Bello told Vanguard that the entire Lagos Island has been under his charge but the boys from the Lagos State Park and Garage Management Committee have stopped movement of election materials adding that M.C Oluomo’s boys are sabotaging the logistics process of the materials.
Bello also said if urgent steps were not taken to call Musiliu Akinsanya and his boys to order, the entire election process in Lagos State could be truncated.
Efforts to reach Jimoh Buhari, Spokesman for Oluomo, was futile as calls and text messages to his phone were not answered neither were the message responded to.
When Vanguard contacted a close associate of Oluomo, he said he’s not sure Oluomo would make any threat that could undermine Tinubu’s chances of winning today’s presidential election.
In his reaction, Lagos Resident Electoral Commissioner, REC, Olusegun Agbaje said “Election under my watch is on course. It’s not every issue that I must react to”
On his part, INEC commissioner for Voters Education, Mr. Festus Okoye said: “I have not been briefed or informed of the incident and it may be counter-productive to speculate.
“Nigerians are engaged with the electoral process and we shall do all that is within our power to move materials and personnel to locations.” (Text, excluding headline: Saturday Vanguard).
