Governor Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri of Adamawa State cast his vote in the ongoing Local Government Council elections across the state.
He voted at Unit 001 in Kirchinga Ward, located in the Madagali Local Government Area, at 12 pm on Saturday, 13 July, 2024.
This election follows a landmark judgment by the Supreme Court of Nigeria, which granted financial autonomy to the 774 Local Government Areas in the country.
The judgment, passed two days prior to the elections, prohibits the 36 state governors and the minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) from removing elected chairmen from office.
The Adamawa State Independent Electoral Commission (ADSIEC) is responsible for conducting these elections, which include filling the 21 Local Government Council chairmanship positions and the 226 Ward councilor seats.
In a notable move towards gender balance, today’s election is expected to result in the election of 21 male council chairmen and 21 female vice chairmen, regardless of party affiliation.
This is because all chairmanship candidates have nominated female running mates as part of the state’s efforts to promote gender equality.
“This government belongs to the women and the youth as the next future leaders, hence the need for our administration to give them more priority,” Governor Fintiri stated. “Hopefully, by 2027 when my administration is leaving the seat of power, there will be a breed of youthful yet energetic new leaders to take over,” he added.
Voters interviewed by journalists expressed confidence in the election process, noting that “so far it looks credible, we don’t know what will follow.” However, the voting process began behind schedule due to the late arrival of materials and electoral officials at various polling units.
