LG Polls: Youth Group Knocks OYSIEC over Timetable, Labels Exercise ‘Waste of Resources’

LG Polls: Tension as Youth Group Knocks OYSIEC over Timetable, Labels Exercise ‘Waste of Resources’

​ The political landscape in Oyo State has been thrown into turmoil following the release of the local government election timetable by the Oyo State Independent Electoral Commission (OYSIEC), with a prominent youth coalition, the Oyo Youth Mandate, rejecting the exercise as a blatant misplacement of priorities.

​The OYSIEC schedule, which directs that political party primaries be held between June 29 and July 27, has drawn sharp criticism from the youth group. In a statement issued on Friday, the group condemned the timing and the cost of the exercise, characterizing it as a significant drain on the state’s resources that could be better utilized to alleviate the current economic hardships faced by the people.

​The opposition’s stance is tied to the contentious debate surrounding local government autonomy. Drawing on Governor Seyi Makinde’s well-known position on the issue—where the governor has frequently emphasized productivity and functional governance over total administrative independence—the youth group argued that holding elections under the current framework fails to address the fundamental need for grassroots development.

​“We are witnessing a cycle of expensive political theatre that does little to improve the lives of the average citizen,” a spokesperson for the Oyo Youth Mandate stated. “At a time when the state is grappling with various socio-economic challenges, sinking huge sums of taxpayers’ money into an exercise whose outcome is arguably predetermined is, to say the least, a waste of resources.”

​The group’s rejection adds a fresh layer of intensity to the brewing political tension in the state. Just a day prior, the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Oyo State had also announced its decision to boycott the elections, labeling the move by the state government as “illegal” and “self-serving.” The APC alleged that the exercise was a strategic maneuver by the administration to install loyalists across the 33 local government areas before the expiration of the governor’s tenure in 2027.

​The Oyo Youth Mandate is now calling on the government and the electoral body to prioritize structural reforms that empower local councils to become self-sustaining hubs of development, rather than focusing on electoral cycles that the group insists provide no tangible benefits to the youth or the general public.

​As the June 29 deadline for the commencement of party primaries approaches, the combined pressure from political opposition and youth advocacy groups has left the electoral process in a state of deep uncertainty. Political analysts are now watching to see if the state government will heed the growing calls for a rethink or push ahead with the schedule, a move many believe could further alienate segments of the electorate.