Emerging report reaching on Friday, indicates that the Federal High Court sitting in Umuahia, the Abia State capital, has ordered the Attorney-General of the Federation, AGF, and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, SAN, to immediately delete Section 84 (12) of the newly signed Electoral Act, despite the decision of the 9th Senate to leave it in the Act, after President Muhammadu Buhari’s earlier request for it to be removed.
Recall, that Section 84 (12) of the Act restricts sitting cabinet members from contesting for elective Offices, without resigning.
The section reads: “No political appointee at any level shall be 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”.
Recall also, that President Buhari had argued that “Section 84 (12) constitutes a disenfranchisement of serving Political Office holders from voting or being voted for at Conventions or Congresses of any political party, for the purpose of the nomination of Candidates for any election, in cases where it holds earlier than 30 days to the national election”.
However, the Senate refused to consider the President’s request, and threw out the Bill seeking the amendment of the now controversial Section, with Lawmakers stressing that an amendment would be going against the Civil Service norms, and would be injurious to the well-being of the society.
Nonetheless, on Wednesday, the AGF stated publicly, following the Senate’s refusal to remove the Section, that the Federal Government will consider all other options available to it, before a position will be taken.
Delivering her judgement, Justice Evelyn Anyadike held that the Section is “unconstitutional, invalid, illegal, null, void, and of no effect whatsoever, and ought to be struck down, as it cannot stand when it is in violation of the clear provisions of the Constitution”.
She ordered that the Attorney-General of the Federation “forthwith delete the said Subsection 12 of Section 84 from the body of the Electoral Act, 2022”.
More news later…
