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Section 84 (12): To Be Or Not To Be

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In the original version of the Electoral Act, Section 84 (12) comes with a sub-heading titled: “Political Appointee Not Eligible as a Voting Delegate or Aspirant.” Using this as a guide, it becomes crystal clear that the intent of the lawmakers with the introduction of Section 84 (12) was to make it impossible for a political appointee to aspire for elective office whilst still holding on to his political appointment. I honestly cannot see how this piece of legislation amounts to an amendment of the Constitution through the backdoor as some have suggested.
The definition of Section 318 of the Constitution which clarifies those to be regarded as part of the public service of the Federation also made similar provisions for public service of the State. Judicial authorities abound that political appointees hold their offices at the pleasure of the appointor and they are not civil or public servants as provided for in the Constitution. Thus, there is no apparent or implied conflict between Section 84 (12) of the Electoral Act and any of the provisions of the Constitution highlighted above, the rationale being to ensure that those who hold public office are not exposed to any situation that may lead to a conflict of interest.
In the same vein, section 84 (12) does not infringe upon the right to freely assemble and associate with other persons as provided for in Section 40 of the Constitution or the right to form a political party as provided for under Section 221 thereof. The Constitution for instance provides the right to freedom of movement for every citizen, but to travel out of Nigeria, you need a passport, without which you would not be allowed to board the plane. It is in that passport that the travelling visa to your country of destination will be imposed. The Courts have also held that the requirement for a passport as a condition to travel does not infringe upon the constitutional right of movement
In the case of Awolowo v. Ministry of Internal Affairs, a similar concept was elucidated upon by the Supreme Court, when the appellant, in that case, the late Chief Obafemi Awolowo, SAN, was standing trial for treasonable felony. He engaged the service of a British lawyer, Mr. E.F.N. Gratiaen to defend him. On arrival in Lagos, MrGratiaen was denied entry into Nigeria by the Federal Ministry of Internal affairs. The court had to determine the import of Section 21 (5) (c) of the then 1960 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (now section 36 (6) (c ) of the 1999 Constitution, which provided that “an accused person is entitled to defend himself in person or by a legal practitioner of his own choice”. Chief Awolowo contended in that case that he was entitled to be represented by any lawyer of his choice whether indigenous or British.
Thus, the order prohibiting his lawyer, Mr Gratiaen, was ultra vires and against his right to a fair hearing. He, therefore, prayed the court to grant an order of injunction, restraining the defendant from preventing the said Mr. Gratiaen (QC) or any other British counsel who might be the counsel of his choice, from entering Nigeria to defend him in the pending charge. On the other hand, the defendants, in that case, argued that the provisions of section 13 of the Immigration Act which provides that “Notwithstanding anything in this ordinance contained, the Governor-General may, in his absolute discretion, prohibit the entry into Nigeria of any person, not being a native of Nigeria”, gives the ministry the power to refuse a non-Nigerian entry into the country. More so, in the exercise of the right conferred by Section 21 (5) (c) of the 1960 Constitution, the legal representative must be a qualified person entitled to a right of audience in Nigerian courts. Secondly, he must be available to take up the case, and therefore must be able to enter Nigeria as of right and must be a Nigerian.
The High Court of the federal territory of Lagos, per Justice Udo Udoma held that based on the above provisions, the legal representative chosen by an accused person if resident outside Nigeria must be a person who could enter Nigeria as of right and must not be anyone under any disability. In the words of the judge: “I must state at once that I do not accept as sound proposition the submission that the provision contained in Section 21 (5) (c ) of the Constitution, liberally interpreted, can be construed to entitle anyone to bring a Counsel from the United Kingdom to defend him in a criminal charge. To accept that interpretation, would be to strain language. The Constitution is a Nigerian Constitution, meant for Nigerians in Nigeria. It only runs in Nigeria. The natural consequence of this is that the legal representative contemplated in Section 21 (5) (c) ought to be someone in Nigeria, and not outside it.” This decision was affirmed by the Supreme Court in the appeal filed against it by Chief Awolowo. In a similar vein, Section 84 (12) has not stopped any citizen from contesting election but it has imposed a condition upon political appointees to first step down from their political position to seek elective office. There is no contradiction at all in this laudable provision with the Constitution.
Most political appointees are paid one form of emolument or allowance or the other by the government, with specific responsibilities to perform. Thus, even apart from the conflict of retaining an executive position and seeking elective office, how does a person occupying a political office abandon his responsibilities for which he is being paid to embark upon campaigns at the expense of the people? What justification can we give for retaining a person on the payroll of the government who already has his eyes on another assignment? Political appointees and persons in public service of the Federation and of the States are two separate and distinct classes of persons. While those in public service have not less than thirty days ahead of their party primaries to resign to contest an election, political appointees must resign before they can become voting delegates or be voted for in their party primaries or congresses. The Constitution stipulates that public office holders resign “at least” thirty days before the elections they are interested in, which presupposes that such public officers could indeed resign earlier than the 30 days, however, the Electoral Act stipulates that political appointees must resign before party primaries/congresses where candidates are to emerge.
The question to ask then is whether the National Assembly has by Section 84 (12) of the Electoral Act negated the constitutional stipulation of “at least 30 days”? Certainly not. The two concepts do not oppose themselves at all. For civil and public servants, the Constitution demands that they resign not less than thirty days prior to any election for which they seek to contest whilst Section 84 (12) simply prohibits political appointees from participating in elections to be conducted at the conventions and congresses of their political parties whilst still retaining their political appointments. In Section 228 (a), the Constitution states that the National Assembly “… may by law provide guidelines and rules to ensure internal democracy within political parties, including making laws for the conduct of the party primaries, party congresses and party convention”. Under and by virtue of Section 4 of the same Constitution, “the National Assembly shall have the power to make laws for the peace, order and good government of the Federation or any part thereof”. What then, if one may ask, could be the ‘offence’ of the National Assembly in fulfilling its mandate as directed by the Constitution?
To my mind, there is really no need for us to split hairs on this simple matter of interpretation of the Constitution and the Electoral Act. Unless as suggested by Mr. Femi Falana, SAN and many others, the executive arm has an axe to grind with the legislature over this very harmless piece of legislation, there can be no basis for the jubilation that has greeted the judgment of the Umuahia Federal High Court by the executive. We must sanitize the electoral space to remove all vestiges of manipulation and land mines. It is not in our best interest for those that we pay to perform certain duties to abscond from their sacred responsibilities in order to actualise their personal ambitions to seek elective office. They owe us the duty of fairness to surrender our mandate granted to them through their appointments should they aspire to contest any election. It is gratifying that the National Assembly and other stakeholders of our electoral system have decided to join the case to explore further interpretation by the appellate courts. That is commendable indeed or else we may soon have in our hands a ridiculous situation whereby the Chairman of INEC or even the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria may seek to contest election whilst still holding on to their appointments.

By: Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa
Adegboruwa, a constitutional lawyer, is a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN).

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Anambra Guber: ADC Candidate Urges INEC To Tackle Vote Buying 

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The candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) in the forthcoming Anambra governorship election, Mr John Nwosu, has urged the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to ramp up measures to curtail vote buying in the election.

Claiming that elections in the country are typically characterized by vote buying, Mr Nwosu said a repeat of such phenomenon would taint the credibility of the forthcoming gubernatorial poll.

Mr Nwosu is among the 16 governorship candidates listed by INEC in a June 4, 2025 statement to participate in the November 8, 2025 election in Anambra State.

His party, the ADC, will battle it out with other parties to unseat incumbent Governor Chukwuma Soludo of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA).

Mr Nwosu, in a statement on Saturday, said it was baffling seeing voters openly selling their votes to party agents and other representatives around polling units on election day.

According to him, “such practices not only derail the true will of the people but also reduce elections to an auction, where the state is effectively handed over to the highest bidder.”

Mr Nwosu urged INEC to introduce secure voting cubicles that would safeguard the legitimate rights of voters and uphold the sovereignty of democracy.

“INEC must provide secure voting cubicles to ensure ballots remain private and secret. Currently, many polling areas are too exposed, allowing others to see the voting process. This not only encourages vote buying but also undermines the integrity of the elections.

“Voting must remain secret. Nigeria already has strong electoral laws which, if properly enforced, can deliver outcomes that truly benefit society”, Mr Nwosu said.

He held that the Anambra governorship election was another opportunity for INEC to secure the trust of Nigerians about its commitment to transparency and fairness during polls.

He also noted the role of security agencies in tackling the menace of vote buying on the day of election.

He said, “The success of any political activity depends largely on security, because security is key. While it is not solely INEC’s duty to ensure elections are properly conducted, the Commission must create an enabling environment that allows citizens to participate freely, conduct themselves properly, and exercise their right to vote.”

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Alleged Attack On Abure In Benin, LP Calls For Investigation

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The leadership of the Labour Party (LP), on Saturday, condemned the attack on its factional Chairman, Barrister Julius Abure, at the Benin Airport, Edo State.

The party, in a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Obiora Ifoh, called on the relevant security agencies to investigate the attackers and their sponsors.

“The Labour Party is perplexed by the physical attack on our National Chairman, Barrister Julius Abure, by agents suspected to be working for anti-democratic elements who have tried unsuccessfully to wrestle the leadership of the party from him.

“Few hours ago, a prominent member of a known political family, Ms Precious Oruche, alias ‘Mama P’, accosted Barrister Abure while on a queue at the Nnamdi Azikiwe Airport Abuja, boarding a Max Air flight en route to Benin, and attacked the Labour Party’s National Chairman unprovoked.

“The attacker, Madam P, who is also a known content creator, continued the attack all through the duration of the flight, defying all attempts by the Max Air flight attendants to calm her.

“The assault, which attracted a large population of onlookers, continued unabated on disembarkment at the Benin Airport while she continued recording the scene.

“It took the intervention of the security agents on hand to whisk Abure to safety while the attacker was handed over to the police for questioning.

“In one of her films released, the lady, who is a prominent member of the ‘Obidient’ and claimed that she has contacts with the highest police hierarchy, boasted that nothing will happen to her.

“She vowed that she will not stop attacking Abure or any member of the Labour Party executive because, according to her, ‘you have killed Labour Party and you are the reason why Obi is no longer in the Labour Party.’

“The leadership of the Labour Party is completely troubled with this cyber-bullying and the consequences of the action of this political agent on the party. We are by this statement calling on the Inspector General of Police to thoroughly investigate this suicidal aggression against the leadership of the Labour Party and Barrister Julius Abure in particular.

“We sincerely believe that the lady-agent was on an assignment to accomplish the desires of her paymasters. Assault and cyber-bullying are severe crimes under our laws and we think that the Police must fish out her sponsors and cohorts, and bring them to book.

“We are calling on the members of the Labour Party to be calm, even in the face of this unwarranted provocation and wait for the outcome of the investigation on the unprovoked attack against the leadership of the party,” the statement read.

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New PDP Leaders Emerge In Adamawa After Congress 

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The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) delegates in Adamawa have elected Hamza Madagali and Saleh Sheleng as the state chairman and secretary of the party, respectively, to pilot the affairs of the party for the next four years.

Speaking during the party’s congress in Yola, the state capital, on Saturday, Mr David Lorhenba, the chairman, Adamawa Congress Committee, described the exercise as hitch-free.

He said that a total of 2,656 delegates from 21 local government areas came out and elected 39 officials.

Mr Lorhenba commended the delegates for conducting themselves in an orderly manner.

“The conduct of the congress is very successful, all the delegates come from 21 Local Government Areas and cast their votes peacefully.

“We have a total of 2,656 delegates and we have announced the winners very successfully”, he said.

In his remarks, Alhaji Attahiru Shehu, the outgoing chairman, congratulated the new executives and charged them to continue on what they have already done for the party to remain strong.

According to him, they started as opposition in the state and produced Gov. Ahmadu Fintiri who is serving his second term, opining they “he has done well for the state.”

In his acceptance speech, Mr Madagali thanked the delegates for the confidence they reposed in him.

He promised to run an open door policy in manning the affairs of the party.

“Let us continue the legacy of good governance and prepare ahead for 2027 with focus, discipline and unity.

“To those outside our party, especially the youths and women of Adamawa, we invite you into our party.

“PDP is your home. Our doors are open to all who wish to contribute positively to the development of our state.

“Our party will continue to be a shining example of people-focused on leadership,” he said.

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