News
Why we can’t replace Ifeanyi Uba, eight months after – INEC
Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), has given reasons the seats of Ifeanyi Uba, the Senator representing Anambra South and Monday Okpebholo, incumbent Governor of Edo State are still vacant at the Red Chambers of the National Assembly.
Uba, of the Young Progressives Party (YPP), died in London in July 2024, why Okpebholo, who left the Senate to campaign for his election in Edo State, had his seat declared vacant in December 2024, after he was sworn into office.
Regardless, the two seats, have not been filled alongside 14 others in the National Assembly including the House of Representatives as well as state Houses of Assembly for the main reason of paucity of funds.
The Nation reports that the situation might remain that way until funding is released, quoting officials of the commission as saying that it is actually sourcing for the necessary funding to fulfill the obligation of filling the 16 vacancies, in the affected 12 states across the country.
Against the backdrop of INEC already overshooting its timeframe for the election, and thus breaching Section 76(2) of the Constitution which prescribes a by-election into a vacant seat within one month, the Senate had passed a resolution directing INEC to hold elections into the two vacant seats in the Red Chamber.
Before then, the House of Representatives had in February resolved to also investigate the delay directing its Committee on Electoral Matters to invite the leadership of INEC to provide a detailed explanation of the reasons behind the delay.
Apart from the Senate seats in Edo and Anambra, there also five vacant House of Representatives seats in Edo, Oyo, Kaduna, Jigawa and Ogun states, while the remaining nine seats are in Houses of Assembly.
The vacant House of Representatives includes that Ovia North-South Federal Constituency vacated by Dennis Idahosa, now Deputy Governor of Edo State, Isa Dogonyaro (Garki-Babura, Jigawa); Ekene Abubakar Adams (Chikun-Kajuru, Kaduna State); Olaide Akinremi (Ibadan North, Oyo State) and Oriyomi Adewunmi Onanuga (Ikenne-Sagamu-Remo North, Ogun State), resulting from the death of the affected members.
At the first quarterly meeting of the Commission with members of the Inter-agency Consultative Committee on Election Security in February, INEC Chairman Prof. Mahmood Yakubu explained that the commission has 16 outstanding by elections to conduct.
The Nation quotes Rotimi Oyekanmi, spokesman to the INEC boss as saying that the Commission must get the required resources to conduct the elections, adding that the electoral body would issue a timetable when it is ready to conduct the by elections.
The laws of the land, including the 1999 Constitution and the Electoral Act provide that all constituencies be represented in Parliament, the Electoral Act 2022 did not make any specific provision on the conduct of such by elections.
No single section of the law deals with by-elections explicitly. However, according to the Electoral Act 2022, by-elections are typically held to fill vacant seats in the National Assembly or State Houses of Assembly.
The Electoral Act 2022 provides guidelines for the conduct of by-elections, including the process for nominating candidates, the timeline for the election, and the procedures for voting and counting.
In a motion on the delay in conducting by elections adopted on the February 19 by the House of Representatives, Jafaru Leko (APC, Bauchi), said INEC, which was established pursuant to Section 153(f) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended), is the sole body vested with the responsibility of conducting elections for the federal States, Federal Capital Territory (FCT) and the Area Councils of the FCT.
According to the Bauchi lawmaker, Sections 47 and 90 of the Constitution, (as amended), outlines the establishment of the National Assembly and the State Houses of Assembly, ensuring the right of citizens to be represented in the federal and state legislative bodies.
He said: “Since 2023 general and subsequent elections, there have been instances of resignations, deaths, appointments, or appointments of former members of both the National and State Assemblies to executive positions.
“Section 68 of the Constitution provides for the cessation and vacation of seats of the National Assembly, whereas section 76(2) stresses the need for a bye-election to be conducted not later than one month after the vacancy occurs.
“Upon the declaration of these seats as vacant, the INEC is obligated, under the provisions of Section 76(2), to conduct by-elections to fill the vacant positions and ensure proper representation of the affected constituencies.
“Nigeria practices a constitutional democracy that the continued vacancy of these seats, without the holding of timely by-elections results in the disenfranchisement of the affected, citizens, which constitutes a violation of the constitutional principles of representation and deprives the electorates of their right to adequate representation.
“The delay in conducting the by-elections for the vacant seats is a contravention of constitutional provision, a breach of the due process and denial of the affected constituencies’ proper representation.”
He warned that electoral body’s “inaction sets a dangerous precedent, where compliance with the Constitution and electoral laws becomes optional rather than mandatory.”
Peter Obi, candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), has given assignment to Nigerians to put all those aspiring to take up political positions in the country through the grill to ascertain their level of integrity, saying it was required as a sine qua non for the job they seek.
Obi, who has been a subject of discussion in the polity since the allegation of corruption was levied against him by Kenneth Okonkwo, spokesman of his campaign in 2023, over the conduct of the party’s primaries to choose candidates for the 2027 general elections, said the grilling must start with his own person.
A guest in an interview on a podcast with Rufai Oseni, a popular television anchor, the former Governor of Anambra State, stated that it was actually for this reason that he had now sworn to see the litigation he instituted against Okonkwo through.
His take is that the Nollywood actor should use the courtrooms to give all the details of bad behaviour, following his threat to expose him fully, after alleging that he was collecting money from aspirants in the said election for electoral favours.
Hear him: “The issue of taking Kenneth Okonkwo to court wouldn’t have arisen if he had stopped at those allegations. But he claimed he still has more he would expose about me in the future. So, I am very happy to take him to court so that he can expose me publicly, alongside other Nigerians. If any of them has any criminal allegations against me, they should bring them to court.
“Not just Kenneth, everybody should now say those things they know that is bad about me or I did that is wrong because it’s good for the system, it’s good for the society,” Obi said.
“So, if you know that when we were in primary school, this man was cheating or didn’t go to the primary school, didn’t go to secondary school, didn’t do, if you know this man has done something criminal somewhere, this is time to bring it up.”
For the umpteenth time, Atiku Abubakar, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has warned about the dangerous implication of using state institutions, particularly the judiciary to destroy Nigeria’s democracy, saying it is an ill-wind that blows nobody any good.
Atiku, presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), speaking on the heels of Tuesday’s verdict of the Court of Appeal, halting the de-registration order by the Federal High Court, insisted that judicial officers must not lend themselves to any act capable of undermining the nation’s democratic process.
The appellate court had ordered a stay of execution on the order made on Monday by Justice Peter Lifu of the Federal High Court Abuja, for the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to deregister the ADC alongside four other political parties).
A totally scandalised Court of Appeal, sitting in Abuja, had taken umbrage, sparing no hard words in upbraiding the lower court judge, stating that his likes were unfit to sit on the bench.
In a unanimous ruling by a three-man panel, the court held that Lifu’s action was “the highest form of judicial impertinence”, stressing that the Supreme Court previously held that a judge who acted in such a manner.
Describing his conduct as the height of judicial rascality, the upper court, stated: “Courts are enjoined to protect their integrity. This Court has supervisory authority over the trial court.
“The decision of the lower court to proceed with the judgment despite the express order of this court is a brazen violation of the hierarchy of the court and the 1999 Constitution.
This court has the duty to invoke its powers in ensuring that its orders are obeyed. The application for a stay of execution is here yet granted. The enforcement of the judgment is stayed.”
Atiku, who hailed the position of the higher court, which restored his hope to be on the ballot as presidential candidate in the 2027 election, also noted the role of INEC as “significant.”
He said: “I welcome the Court of Appeal’s decision to stay the execution of the Federal High Court judgement seeking the deregistration of our great party, the ADC, and four other political parties. It is particularly significant that INEC itself initiated the application for the stay.
“The development reflects growing public concern over judicial contradictions and politically charged rulings within the judiciary. “Any attempt to undermine Nigeria’s hard-won democracy through judicial manipulation is a grave danger to the Republic. If our democracy suffers further injury, history will demand accountability from those entrusted with dispensing justice.
Outside ADC, Lifu’s order, also included: Action Democratic Congress (ADC), Action Peoples Party (APP), Action Alliance (AA), Accord Party (AP) and Zenith Labour Party (ZLP), similarly slammed for allegedly failing to meet the constitutional requirements for continued registration and participation in elections.
“He is running in contempt of the court. Justice Lifu should be arrested because he is acting in contempt of the court which is a criminal act,” were the exact words with which the African Democratic Congress (ADC), demonstrated its angst over the court ruling on Monday, ordering its de-registration as a political party in Nigeria.
A furious Bolaji Abdullahi, spokesman of the party, told his host while appearing as a guest on Monday’s edition of Politics Today, a public affairs programme on Channels Television that the judge of the Abuja Federal High Court who gave the order was actually playing with fire because of the consequences.
Directly accusing him of playing the script of the All Progressives Congress (APC), to ensure that President Bola Tinubu emerged the sole candidate for the 2027 presidential election, the party spokesman, was emphatic that the plan would not work, as head or tail, ADC must be on the ballot in all the elections.
Hear him: “There is a Court of Appeal order saying don’t hear this case until October 27. So, on what basis? You can’t place something on nothing. The Court of Appeal said don’t act on this until I hear it on October 27. So, on what basis did he deliver the judgement
“So, for us in the African Democratic Congress, what we’re convinced and they know is what they have done has no leg to stand on legally. What they want to do is to create doubts in the minds of the people that this ADC has too many legal cases, can we actually run on this? And to distract us. But we’re not distracted.
“We’re very clear. It was in spite of all they have done since ADC came on board that we ran one of the best and one of the most comprehensive direct primaries in the history of democracy in Nigeria. So, we are strong enough to withstand this. And that’s why I’m saying that we are going to contest in 2027. We’re ADC. We don’t buckle before dictatorship.”
Stressing on the implication of the judgement, which also affected Accord Party (AP), Action Peoples Party (APP), Action Alliance (AA), and Zenith Labour Party (ZLP) for allegedly failing to meet constitutional and electoral performance requirements, following a suit by the National Forum of Former Legislators, he said it portended grave danger.
He added: “We are not surprised. We know that the Nigerian people believe that there is a problem with the judiciary, but what we did not expect is the level of judicial rascality that was demonstrated today.
“What we are saying is that we reject it in its totality, and we are saying that the people behind this are playing with fire. Hundreds, if not thousands, have obtained nomination forms and contested elections and emerged as candidates on the platform of the ADC.”
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