Buhari, Malami ask Supreme Court to void Electoral Act Section 84 (12) – Newstrends
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Buhari, Malami ask Supreme Court to void Electoral Act Section 84 (12)

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3 years ago

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President Muhammmadu Buhari and Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) Abubakar Malami

President Muhammmadu Buhari and Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) Abubakar Malami have asked the Supreme Court to void the provision of Section 84 (12) of the Electoral Act 2022.

Their request is contained in a suit they filed April 29, 2022 before the apex court through a group of private lawyers,  including Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), hired by the Office of the Attorney-General of the Federation.

The suit marked: SC/CV/504/2022 has the National Assembly  as the sole defendant.

The controversial Section 84 (12) of the Electoral Act states: “No political appointee at any level shall be a voting delegate or be voted for at the convention or congress of any political party for the purpose of the nomination of candidates for any election.”

On May 11, a three-member panel of the Court of Appeal, in Abuja set aside the judgment of the Federal High Court(FHC) in Umuahia which voided the provision of Section 84(12) of the Electoral Act 2022.

The panel headed by Justice Hamma Akawu Barka held that the FHC had no jurisdiction to have entertained the case because the plaintiff, Nduka Edede lacked the locus standi to have filed the suit in the first place.

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It however held that if the court was to determine the case on merit, the provision of Section 84 (12) of the Electoral Act was unconstitutional, being in breach of Section 42(1)(a) of the 1999 Constitution.

Buhari and Malami  are therefore  of the opinion that Section 84 (12)  section of the Electoral Act 2022 is  in conflict with constitutional provisions.

They are contending that the 1999 Constitution has made provisions for qualifications and disqualifications for the offices of the president and vice president, governor and deputy govemor, Senate and House of Representatives, and state Houses of Assembly, ministers, commissioners and special advisers.

The plaintiffs  added that the same Constitution spells out  “the qualifying factors for election into the office of president, vice-president. governor, deputy gavemor, Senate, House of Representatives, Houses of Assembly and ministers. .”

They  are praying the court for the following reliefs:

*A declaration that by the joint and or combined reading of Sections 65, 66, 106, 107, 131, 137, 147, 151, 177, 182, 192 and 196, of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999, (as amended), the provisions of section 84 (12) of the Electoral Act, 2022 which also ignores Section 84(3) of the same Act, is an additional qualifying and/or disqualifying factors for the National Assembly, Houses of Assembly, governorship and presidential elections as enshrined in the said constitution, hence unconstitutional, unlawful, null and void.

*A declaration that having regard to the clear provision of section 1(3) of the Constitution as amended, read together with section 4 of the same constitution, the legislative powers vested in the defendant do not permit or empower them  to make any other law prescribing additional qualifying /disqualifying grounds for election to the National Assembly, Houses of Assembly, governorship  and presidential election outside the express constitutional qualification and disqualification provisions as already provided in each or all of Sections 65, 66, 106, 107, 131, 137, 147, 151, 177, 182, 192 and 196 of the 1999 Constitution   (as amended), and without amendment to any of those sections is for reason of inconsistency, unconstitutional and therefore null and vold.

*A declaration that section 84 (12) of the Electoral Act, 2022 disqualifying a political appointee from being a voting delegate or be voted for at a convention or congress of any political party for the purpose of the nomination of candidates for any election Is discriminatory, inconsistent with and in violent breach of the provision of each or all of Sections 42, 65, 66, 106, 107, 131, 137, 147, 151, 177, 182, 192 and 196 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999, (as amended), as well as Article 2 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights and some is null and void by reason of its inconsistency.

*A declaration that by the introduction of the provisions of Section 84(12) into the Electoral Act, 2022, but in disregard of Section 84(3) of the some Act, the defendant has acted ultra vires the legislative powers vested in it under the provision of section 4 of the Constitution  (as amended) and/or in violation or breach of the provisions of Sections 65, 66, 106, 107, 131, 137, 147, 151, 177, 182, 192 and 196, thereby rendering Section 84(12) of the Electoral Act, 2022 unconstitutional, null and void.

*An order nullifying the provisions of Section 84 (12) of the Electoral Act, 2022 by application of the blue pencil rule, for being unconstitutional, illegal, null and void and having been made in excess of the legislative powers of the defendant as enshrined in Section 4 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended).”

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Edo Gov Okpebholo freezes govt accounts, reverses ministry’s name

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6 hours ago

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November 14, 2024

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Edo State Governor, Monday Okpebholo

Edo Gov Okpebholo freezes govt accounts, reverses ministry’s name

Edo State Governor, Monday Okpebholo, has directed the immediate freezing of all state-owned bank accounts.

In a statement issued on Thursday by his Chief Press Secretary, Fred Itua, the governor stated that the accounts would remain frozen until further notice.

He instructed commercial banks, ministries, departments, and agencies (MDAs) to comply with the order immediately or face severe consequences.

The statement reads: “All state bank accounts with commercial banks have been frozen. Commercial banks must comply with this order and ensure that not a single naira is withdrawn from government coffers until further notice.

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“Heads of Ministries, Departments, and Agencies must ensure full compliance without delay.

“Following necessary investigations and reconciliations, the governor will take appropriate action and decide on the way forward. For now, this order remains in effect.”

Okpebholo also directed relevant agencies to revert the name of the Ministry of Roads and Bridges to its previous title, the Ministry of Works, a change made during the Godwin Obaseki administration.

“It is odd to name a government institution the Ministry of Roads and Bridges, especially when not a single bridge was built by the previous administration — not even a pedestrian bridge.

“In the coming days, we will examine further actions taken by the previous administration and make decisions that serve the best interests of the state,” the statement added.

 

Edo Gov Okpebholo freezes govt accounts, reverses ministry’s name

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Israel-Palestinian conflict: Two-state solution is a deception, says Gumi

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16 hours ago

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November 14, 2024

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Prominent Islamic scholar Dr. Ahmad Mahmud Gumi

Israel-Palestinian conflict: Two-state solution is a deception, says Gumi

Prominent Islamic scholar Dr. Ahmad Mahmud Gumi has criticized the widely discussed two-state solution for the Israel-Palestine conflict, calling it a “deception.”

His remarks followed a recent summit of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) in Riyadh, where President Bola Tinubu and other leaders condemned Israel’s actions in Gaza and urged an end to hostilities.

In an interview with Daily Trust at his Kaduna residence, Gumi argued, “This Two-State Solution is a deception. No Israeli will allow a Palestinian to survive, and Palestinians will never allow Israel to survive.

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The only solution is to dissolve the two states and create a democratically electable region.”

Gumi commended the OIC’s support for Palestine, noting that Muslims and Arabs worldwide increasingly see the treatment of Palestinians as “genocide” and accuse Israel of human rights abuses.

He also called for a return to the pre-1948 structure, where Palestinians, Jews, and Christians lived together, suggesting a single, inclusive state that allows peaceful coexistence.

“When I hear people talking about Two-State Solutions, I know they are just deceiving themselves,” Gumi added, advocating for a unified region where people of all faiths can live together, similar to the multi-faith coexistence seen in countries like the United States.

 

Israel-Palestinian conflict: Two-state solution is a deception, says Gumi

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Court sacks Ondo LP candidate, two days to governorship poll

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16 hours ago

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November 14, 2024

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Olusola Ebiseni

Court sacks Ondo LP candidate, two days to governorship poll

The Labour Party candidature of Olusola Ebiseni for the upcoming gubernatorial election in Ondo State has been nullified.

The nullification follows the sacking of Ebiseni by the Court of Appeal, sitting in Abuja, on Wednesday.

The governorship election of the southwest State will hold on Saturday, 16 November 2024.

The judgement disqualifying Ebiseni was unanimously delivered by the three members of the panel and read out by the chairman of the panel, Justice Adebukola Banjoko.

The judgment granted the prayer of the Labour Party who preferred the case against Ebiseni.

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Justice Banjoko held that, “the appeal marked CA/ABJ/CV/1172/2024 brought by the Labour Party against Chief Olusola Ebiseni and two others is allowed.”

Justice Banjoko further stated that the Certified True Copy of the judgment would be provided to the parties involved in the appeal as soon as possible for their review.

Recall that Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court in Abuja had ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission to accept and recognize Olusola Ebiseni and Ezekiel Awude as the Labour Party’s governorship and deputy governorship candidates for the November 16 Ondo State governorship elections.

Justice Nwite confirmed that the second primary election conducted by the Labour Party, which resulted in Ebiseni and Awude being selected as candidates, was valid and should be upheld by INEC.

However, the appellate court has now overturned the judgment of the trial court’s judgment.

 

Court sacks Ondo LP candidate, two days to governorship poll

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