Electoral Commission Postpones Debate Amidst Heated Political Dynamics on Campus

By
By Adetunji Oluwafemi 
The Great Ife Students' Union Electoral Commission, constituted for the 2023/24 Academic Session's Great Ife Students' Union Election and headed by Ehondor Matthew Damilola, has been labelled incompetent and time-wasters by the students of Obafemi Awolowo University following the unexpected postponement of the Debate and Press Night scheduled for 6 p.m. today, Monday, 23rd June 2025, at Oduduwa Hall.

The highly anticipated debate, which was originally expected to start at 6:00 p.m. based on the released election timetable, left many in awe and regret after it was unexpectedly postponed until tomorrow, Tuesday, 24th June 2025.

This accusation of incompetence against the Electoral Commission arose from the fact that aspirants, their supporters, and several other students had already occupied Oduduwa Hall, cheering, gyrating, and canvassing for their candidates, only to wait for hours for the commencement of the debate. Unfortunately, their anticipation was met with disappointment from the Electoral Commission, who they claim "postponed the debate for illogical and irrelevant reasons."

According to the electoral release, "the postponement stems from the Students Representative Council (SRC) leadership in-house election, which took more time than initially planned. Hence, the Debate and Manifesto Presentations will now take place together at the rescheduled time and venue."

Meanwhile, the Association of Campus Journalists, Obafemi Awolowo University (ACJOAU), which has been handling the Press and Debate night in recent years, has previously published a press release, detailing how the current electoral commission has intended to exclude the Press from intervening in the debate process, and how this could undermine the transparency of the forthcoming debate and the overall election. This has called the attention of the campus community to the fact that they are not responsible for any irregularities.

Although the Debate and Manifesto night, which was originally supposed to be held separately for the sake of transparency and accountability, has now been merged, the extent to which the whole exercise will be transparent depends on the electoral commission, as the entire election timetable has been disorganised and disrupted.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Breaking Barriers: Exclusive Interview with the Only Female Bus Driver on OAU Campus

By
Image
By Esther Ademola The Icons Organization, in collaboration with Great Ife Network, recently conducted an exclusive interview with Mrs. Elugbaju, the sole female driver on the OAU campus. Standing out as the only woman among the Towngboro drivers, Mrs. Elugbaju has sparked curiosity about her motivation. During the interview, she shared insights into her experiences and shed light on her journey as a female driver in a male-dominated field. Question : Can you introduce yourself? Mrs Elugbaju : My name is Mrs Elugbaju. I am one of the driver of buses in the campus, I'm the only lady. Question : How did you become a bus driver especially in a University like Obafemi Awolowo University? Mrs Elugbaju:  I'm a civil servant. This is just a part time job for me. After office hour like 5:00pm, I do bring my bus and I will be loading from campus to gate and from gate to Campus like around 7:30pm-8:00pm then I will go back. READ ALSO: OAU Secures Two Gold Medals in Judo at FA...
Read more

Fresher's Week'24: Students' Union Holds Freshers Inter-Faculty Debate

By
Image
By  Adetunji Oluwafemi The Great Ife Students’ Union on Monday, 3rd November 2024, held its planned inter-faculty debate for freshmen. The debate is part of the events that have been prepared for Fresher’s Week 2024. The event experienced a slight delay, as the venue was moved from the 1000-seater to Oduduwa Hall by the order of the school management, which requested that the initial venue be vacated because the office of the Vice President, responsible for the event, failed to seek permission before using it. The event began at 12:35 PM. Faculties were paired and assigned topics: the Faculty of Administration and Science had the topic "Corrupt Democracies are Preferable to Dictatorships"; the Faculty of Agriculture and Dentistry debated on the topic "Subsidy is a Necessary Compromise of the Government, and Should be Implemented in Areas of Essential Public Domains"; the Faculty of Arts and Technology had the topic "Civil Disobedience is a Moral Wea...
Read more

SPECIAL REPORT: Inside UI and OAU Public Hostels

By
Image
By The Icons Organization and Indy Press  For Deborah, a 100-level student and resident of Obafemi Awolowo Hall of residence, University of Ibadan, staying in her hall of residence was a choice she made because she was in her first year of study. She believed this choice was the safest way to get familiar with the school and its environment. Posi, another student, on the other hand, resides in a school hostel due to proximity. “I stay in Obafemi Awolowo Hall of Residence because of its proximity to classes; the fact that it is cheaper, it is less stressful than house hunting, and much safer than staying outside school,” Posi explained.  Posi's reason for staying in Obafemi Awolowo Hall is the same as that of many students who find themselves in public hostels — it is often cheaper and closer to school. This goes to show just how important hostel accommodation is for students in any university, as it affects both their academics and overall wellbeing.  Unfortun...
Read more