The Edo State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has dismissed Saturday’s local government by-elections organised by the Edo State Independent Electoral Commission (EDSIEC), describing the exercise as illegal.
Speaking in Benin, the State Caretaker Chairman of the party, Dr. Tony Aziegbemi, said the polls, scheduled across 59 wards, were in clear violation of a subsisting court order restraining EDSIEC and the state government from conducting them.
“Only last week, the Edo State High Court, presided over by Justice Mary Itsueli, ordered that the seats of duly elected councillors subsist until September 2026. The court categorically restrained EDSIEC from proceeding with any such election. For the state government to ignore this order and proceed is alarming,” Aziegbemi said.
He warned security agencies not to legitimise the process, stressing that the PDP’s participation would have amounted to aiding contempt of court.
“The tenure of the elected chairmen and councillors has not expired; we have five court judgments affirming this. Conducting a by-election is unlawful,” he added.
Aziegbemi further alleged that the exercise was a ploy to siphon public funds.
According to him, the PDP would instead focus on strengthening its structures through ongoing congresses and preparing for the 2027 general elections.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that EDSIEC is currently conducting by-elections into 59 councillorship seats across 18 local government councils. The seats were declared vacant by a resolution of the State House of Assembly, which cited absenteeism of the previous occupants.
