The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has advised Senate President, Dr Ahmad Lawan; and former Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Senator Godswill Akpabio, to seek redress in court following their failure to emerge as senatorial candidates of the All Progressives Congress (APC) for Yobe North; and Akwa Ibom North West, respectively.
This is just as INEC denied the reports making the rounds that it has published the names of candidates for Akwa Ibom North West, and Yobe North senatorial districts, ahead of the 2023 general election.
Lawan and Akpabio were rumoured to have been published as APC senatorial candidates for Yobe North and Akwa Ibom North West, respectively.
They had vied for the APC presidential ticket but lost to former Lagos State Governor, Bola Tinubu, who emerged as the standard-bearer of the ruling party.
However, the commission, in a statement, last Saturday, by its National Commissioner and Chairman, Information and Voter Education Committee, Barrister Festus Okoye, said it did not publish the personal particulars of any candidate for the two constituencies, stressing that the “commission is ‘funtus officio’ in the two cases”.
INEC stated: “The attention of the commission has been drawn to speculations circulating online on the outcome of some of the recent primaries conducted by political parties and related issues. In particular, allegations intended to impugn the integrity of the commission have been made in respect of the Akwa Ibom North West and Yobe North senatorial districts.
“To set the record straight, the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria mandates the commission to monitor the organisation and operation of political parties, including their finances, conventions, congresses, and party primaries. In line with its constitutional and legal obligations, the commission deployed monitors to the various constituencies and received reports of such exercise.
“In relation to the primaries for the Akwa Ibom North West and Yobe North senatorial districts, the commission stands by the monitoring reports received from our state offices. For this reason, the commission did not publish the personal particulars of any candidate for the two constituencies at variance with the state reports. Right now, the commission is ‘funtus officio’ in the two cases.
“Aggrieved parties are at liberty to approach the Federal High Court and seek redress as provided in Section 285 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended) and Sections 29(5) and 84(14) of the Electoral Act, 2022.
On the issuance of Certified True Copies (CTCs) of documents, staff of the commission have been working hard, including weekends, to meet the deluge of requests received. As at Friday, July 8, 2022, the commission has processed 433 requests involving the certification of 1,662,776 pages of documents. Many of them are awaiting collection at the INEC Headquarters by some of the same applicants complaining of delay in issuance of the CTCs.
“Section 29 (4) of the Electoral Act provides that any person may apply to the commission for a copy of nomination form, affidavit, and any other document submitted by a candidate at an election and the commission shall, upon payment of a prescribed fee, issue such person with a certified copy of document within 14 days. Persons applying for CTC of documents should endeavour to act timely and within the ambit of the law.
“The commission will continue to uphold the integrity of the electoral process, including the deepening of the deployment of technology to enhance the credibility of elections,” INEC noted.