Adventist Church kicks against conducting elections on Saturday

Says it disenfranchises its members on their Sabbath day

Seventh Day Adventist Church has kicked against conducting elections on Saturday, which it said deprived its members from exercising their civic responsibilities.

It, however, appealed to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to accede to its request and fix future elections for other days except Saturday, which is observed as Sabbath day by the church.

The President of the Seventh Day Adventist Church, Western Nigeria Union, Pastor Oyeleke Owolabi, who stated this yesterday in Ado-Ekiti during a press conference heralding its five-day 2016 conference starting today in the state, expressed displeasure at how its members were being disenfranchised during every successive election in the country because of their religious beliefs.

He said: “We are not feeling comfortable because we are being disenfranchised.

“We have written many letters to INEC on the need to shift elections from Saturday and I know that it will accede to the request one day.

“We have seen a situation whereby a gubernatorial election was conducted in the country on Tuesday and I think the country recorded the highest turnout in history, so we are begging the INEC to put the interest of our people at heart.”