By CrossRiverWatch Admin
Council elections to elect Chairmen and legislators for the 18 local government areas of Cross River State will hold in the second quarter of 2017 says the Chairman of the State Independent Electoral Commission (CROSIEC), Dr. Mike Ushie.
“I have been saying in different fora on radio and everywhere that elections will hold second quarter of this year” Mike told CrossRiverWatch on telephone.
Rumors were rife that the commission will conduct election early into 2017 with the Special Adviser to Governor Ben Ayade on Inter Party Affairs, Austin Ibok saying that paucity of funds caused the elections not to hold in 2016.
“We needed about NGN6Billion to conduct the election” Austin told co host of The Dialogue With Agba Jalingo, a weekly radio program on Hit 95.9 FM Calabar, Jonathan Ugbal.
He posited that the severance package will cost the state NGN2Billion, the conduct of the election NGN2Billion and the purchase of vehicles for the new chairmen and legislators NGN2Billion.
The tenure of the immediate past Chairmen elapsed on December 15, 2016 with that of their legislators a fortnight later.
Governor Ayade directed the Head of Local Government Administration in each of the 18 local government areas to take charge at the council pending the appointment of a caretaker committee or when elections are conducted.
However, some concerned Cross Riverians took the state to court and secured an injunction to stop the Governor from appointing caretaker committees.
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