Nigeria: INEC Has Powers to Reject Lawan and Akpabio, Says Falana

Lagos-based lawyer, Mr Femi Falana, SAN, has stated that Nigeria’s Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) is empowered by both constitutional and electoral provisions to reject the names of candidates from political parties that ought not to be on the ballot in any election.

Falana’s remarks was in reaction to a statement attributed to a National Commissioner of INEC, Mr Mohammed Haruna, to the effect that the commission’s responsibility did not include rejection of names submitted to it for an election by political parties.

Haruna spoke against the backdrop of the submission of the names of Senate President, Ahmed Lawan, and former Minister of Niger Delta, Senator Godswill Akpabio, as senatorial candidates of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the 2023 general election.

Both Lawan and Akpabio contested the presidential primary of APC. While Akpabio later stepped down, Lawan lost to Senator Bola Tinubu, who won the party’s ticket.

Yet, APC sent the names of Lawan and Akpabio as Yobe and Akwa Ibom states’ senatorial candidates, respectively, even though, both men never bought the expression of interest and nomination forms of their party for the position of senator, and they were neither screened nor did they participate in the primary elections for such position.

While the Akwa Ibom Resident Electoral Commissioner, Mr. Mike Igini, faulted the action of APC, Haruna, on the other hand, claimed that the electoral umpire had no power to reject names sent to it by political parties. In justifying his position, he maintained that primaries were the sole prerogatives of parties, adding that INEC’s responsibility is merely to monitor the primaries and make sure they abide by their own regulations, the Electoral Act and the Constitution.

But Falana faulted Haruna based on the provisions of the Electoral Act, stressing, “Section 84 (1) clearly states that a political party seeking to nominate candidates for elections under this Act shall hold primaries for aspirants to all elective positions, which shall be monitored by the commission. The monitoring by INEC is mandatory. To that extent, any primary of a political party not monitored by officials of INEC is illegal.

“Contrary to the views credited to Mr. Haruna, the powers of INEC have gone beyond ‘merely to monitor’ party primaries. For the avoidance of doubt, Section: 84 (13) unequivocally provides that, ‘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.’”

He said the legal implication of the provision is that INEC shall not include the candidate for the particular election.

Falana stated further, “Furthermore, Section 29 (1) of the Electoral Act, 2022, which provides for the submission of lists of candidates and their affidavits by political parties, states that, ‘Every political party shall, not later than 180 days before the date appointed for a general election under this Act, submit to the commission, in the prescribed forms, the list of the candidates the party proposes to sponsor at the elections, who must have emerged from valid primaries conducted by the political party.’”

According to Falana, Section 29(1) has imposed a duty on political parties to ensure that the candidates whose names are submitted to INEC have emerged from valid primaries.

He said this position was quite different from the provision in Section 31 of the repealed Electoral Act 2010 (as amended), which provided that INEC could not reject the name of any candidate submitted by the parties for any reason whatsoever.

Falana said, “Thus, in the present law, the parties can only submit for the commission’s acceptance, the names of candidates who emerged from valid primaries conducted by the parties and monitored by INEC.

“This position is clearly fortified by Section 84(13). Thus, INEC having sent a team of monitors across its 36 states offices and the Federal Capital Territory, to monitor the primaries, is legally obligated to check the names submitted to it and ensure they are confirmed by the various reports compiled by its officials.

“If the candidates, whose names are submitted to INEC have not emerged from the primaries, the commission will reject such names in exercise of its power under Section 84(13) of the Electoral Act 2022. That was what INEC did in Zamfara State, when that power was not even expressly provided for.

“It is, therefore, most shocking to read in the social media statements attributed to some INEC National Commissioners to the effect that INEC is bound to accept the names of candidates, who did not participate in valid party primaries.

“With respect, the statement that INEC does not have power to reject names of persons submitted by political parties that did not emerge from valid primaries is grossly misleading. In fact, the embarrassing statement amounts to abdication of statutory duty under the above quoted provision of the Electoral Act aimed at sanitising the process of nomination of candidates for national elections in Nigeria.”

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