The case was instituted by the Labour Party, Boot Party and their governorship candidate in Lagos State.
A Federal High Court in Lagos has granted the prayer of the Labour Party seeking an order to bar the Independent National Electoral Commission from using the chairman of the Lagos Parks and Garages, Musliu Akinsanya, better known as MC Oluomo, from distributing election materials in Lagos.
Justice Chukwujekwu Aneke gave the order on Monday.
The suit was instituted by Labour Party and its governorship candidate in Lagos State, Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour, as well as Boot Party and its governorship candidate, Olawale Oluwo.
They prayed the court to stop INEC from engaging MC Oluomo-led Park Management Committee for the distributiion of election materials and conveying INEC ad-hoc staff for the 2023 elections.
The judge granted the prayers of the applicants after INEC failed to show up for the case despite being served.
Olusegun Agbaje, Independent National Electoral Commission Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) in Lagos had said he had no option but to work with the parks committee to distribute election materials and personnel in the state in the absence of the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) and the Road Transport Employers Association of Nigeria (RTEAN) in the state.
The state governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, had set up the parks management committee after banning the operations of NURTW and RTEAN.
While responding to questions on controversies surrounding the engagement of the committee led by MC Oluomo, a Lagos All Progressives Congress chieftain, to distribute election materials and personnel, Agbaje said the commission was only concerned about successfully handling logistics for the elections.
The presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, Atiku Abubakar, has however, warned INEC not to use the Parks Management Committee led by Akinsanya, a former NURTW chairman and APC stalwart, to distribute election materials in order not to compromise the election’s integrity.
Abubakar, in a statement issued on February 2, 2023 by his Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, said INEC must preserve the sanctity of the election and ensure that there is no room for electoral malpractice.
Meanwhile, MC Oluomo has publicly described himself as loyal to former Lagos governor, Bola Tinubu, who is the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress in the February election.
In October 2018, MC Oluomo, in an Instagram post, said Tinubu owned him and the APC and that whatever he (Tinubu) wanted was what he (MC Oluomo) would support.
He wrote on his Instagram page, “I am an Asiwaju Bola Ahmend Tinubu Jagaban loyalist, I wear the Jagaban jersey, I've been a loyalist since 1999, the first mecca i went is through his execellence in the year 2000, moreso, he as done alot for me, he made me who i am today our relationship has been was very cordial and strong in the area that I grew up in.
“So I'm one of his loyalist that have strong believe in him, he own the party and any where his interest belong I Musiliu Ayinde Akinsanya Mc oloumo belong. I and my people in Oshodi formerly endorse HE Akinwunmi Ambode for 2nd term because his government is still working in the shadow of the party national leader, but now the case is vice-visa i have to follow the interest of Bola Ahmend Tinubu and the party decision.
“If Asiwaju Bola Ahmend Tinubu again says is no more Babajide Sanwoolu but someone else, so shall it be.”