President Muhammadu Buhari, has on Friday, finally signed the reworked Electoral Act Amendment Bill into Law, Page 36 learnt.
The President assented to the Bill at a brief ceremony, which held at the Council Chamber of the Aso Rock Presidential Villa, in Abuja.
Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, President of the Senate, Senator Ahmad Lawan, and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila, witnessed the signing of the Bill.
Read the President’s full address below:
THE SIGNING OF ELECTORAL BILL 2022 INTO LAW
STATE HOUSE, ABUJA
FRIDAY 24TH FEBRUARY, 2022.
The Electoral Act (Amendment) Bill 2022, passed by the National Assembly forwarded for Presidential Assent, via a letter dated 31st January, 2022. In line with established tradition, I received inputs from relevant ministries, departments and agencies of government after careful and thorough reviews of the Bill and its implications to democratic processes in our country.
2. It is gratifying to note that the current Bill comes with a great deal of improvement from the previous Electoral Bill 2021. There are salient and praiseworthy provisions that could positively revolutionize elections in Nigeria through the introduction of new technological innovations. These innovations would guarantee the constitutional rights of citizens to vote and to do so effectively.
3. The Bill would also improve and engender clarity, effectiveness and transparency of the election process, as well as reduce to the barest minimum incidences of acrimony arising from dissatisfied candidates and political parties.
4. These commendable efforts are in line with our policy to bequeath posterity and landmark legal framework that paves the way for credible and sound electoral process that we would all be proud of.
5. Distinguished Senators and Honourable Members of the National Assembly, from the review it is my perspective that the substance of the Bill is both reformative and progressive. I am making this bold declaration because I foresee the great potentials of the Bill. Worthy of note include the democratic efficacy of the Bill with particular reference to sections 3, 9(2), 34, 41, 47, 84(9), (10) and (11) among others.
6. This however, cannot be said about one provision as contained in the proposed Bill, which provision constitutes fundamental defect, as it is in conflict with extant constitutional provisions.
7. 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. The section provides as follows:-“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”.
8. This provision has introduced qualification and disqualification criteria that ultra vires the Constitution by way of importing blanket restriction and disqualification to serving political office holders of which they are constitutionally accorded protection.
9. The practical application of section 84(12) of the Electoral Bill, 2022 will, if assented to, by operation of law, subject serving political office holders to inhibitions and restrictions referred to under section 40 and 42 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended).
10. It is imperative to note that the only constitutional expectation placed on serving political office holders that qualify, by extension as public officers within the context of the constitution is resignation, withdrawal or retirement at least 30 days before the date of the election.
11. Hence, it will be stretching things beyond the constitutional limit to import extraneous restriction into the Constitution, on account of practical application of section 84(12) of the bill where political parties’ conventions and congresses were to hold earlier than 30 days to the election.
12. Arising from the foregoing, with particular regards to the benefits of the Bill, industry, time, resources and energy committed in its passage, I hereby assent to the Bill and request the Nationally Assembly to consider immediate amendments that will bring the Bill in tune with constitutionality by way of deleting section 84 (12) accordingly.
Thank you, may God bless our country.
Meanwhile, emerging report indicates that some Ministers in President Buhari’s cabinet, among others, may likely resign as the Electoral Bill has been signed into Law, ahead of the 2023 general elections.
The provision that makes it mandatory for political appointees who want to run for Office to resign, is seen as a clog in the wheel of the Electoral Law.
These appointees do not want to resign, because it is not certain that they will get back their positions, if they lose the primary elections of their parties.
At least four Ministers and a number of personalities heading Ministries, Departments and Agencies, MDAs, may be affected by this development.
Section 84 of the Electoral Act on “Political Appointee not Eligible as a Voting Delegate or Aspirant” provides thus:
“(10) 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.
“(11) Where a political party fails to comply with the provisions of this act in the conduct of its primaries, its candidate for election shall not be included in the election for the particular position in issue.
“(12) Notwithstanding the provisions of this Act or Rules of a political party, an aspirant who complains that any of the provisions of this Act and the Guidelines of a political party have not been complied with in the selection or nomination of a candidate of a political party for election, may apply to the Federal High Court for redress.
“(13) Nothing in this section shall empower the courts to stop the holding of primaries or general elections under this act pending the determination of a suit.”
It was learnt that the President has several political appointees currently manning several MDAs, who will be affected by the just signed Electoral Act.
These political appointees include: 43 Ministers, Special Advisers, Senior Special Assistants, Special Assistants, and Heads of Government Agencies holding sensitive positions that make it difficult for open declaration of their ambitions for 2023.
Some of these political appointees are currently being touted as contenders for Presidential, Governorship, Senatorial, and House of Representatives seats, ahead of the 2023 general elections.
For instance, the names of the Ministers of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi; Science and Technology, Ogbonnaya Onu; Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola; as well as Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige; are being mentioned as the contenders for the Presidential ticket of the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC.
Similarly, the Ministers of Aviation, Hadi Sirika; Communications and Digital Economy, Isa Pantami; Youth and Sports Development, Sunday Dare; as well as the Attorney-General of the Federation, AGF, and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, SAN, are being mentioned as the Governorship Aspirants in Katsina, Gombe, Edo, Oyo, and Kebbi States, respectively.
More news later…
