Kaduna LG poll: Candidates demand reopening of portal, decry high cost of forms

The candidates of the various political parties in Kaduna State have asked Governor Uba Sani to compel the Kaduna State Independent Electoral Commission (KADSIECOM) to reopen the payment portal for the upcoming local government elections in the state.

This followed the reported closure of the portal ahead of the polls.

Recall that KADSIECOM had fixed N2 million as fee for nomination forms for the local government chairmanship and N500,000 for councillorship nomination forms in the election scheduled for October 19.

Speaking at the commission’s headquarters to express their frustration over the exorbitant fees and “confusing guidelines”, Bulus Bitrus, the chairmanship candidate of the Labour Party who spoke on behalf of other candidates said, “The majority of us are not wealthy politicians; we’re ordinary people trying to serve our communities.

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“These fees are not only a barrier to our participation but the sudden closure of the payment portal also contradicts section 5.11 of the KAD SIECOM 2024 election guidelines.

“We demand that the payment portal be reopened to allow candidates to balance their fees, clarify payment procedures to prevent confusion and ensure community members are not disenfranchised.”

He urged Governor Sani to use his good offices to address the concerns of his citizens. The other candidates backed his calls.