A faction of the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP) has urged the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to update its records on the party’s National Executive Committee (NEC) membership, stressing that NNPP chieftains like Senator Rabiu Kwankwaso and the entire membership of the old National Working Committee (NWC) led by Alhaji Abbah Kawu had since been expelled.
The faction in a statement issued on Saturday by the Chairman of the Board of Trustees (BoT) of the party, Dr. Temitope Aluko, also urged the media to respect the NNPP constitution by recognising only officers duly elected by the party’s constitution.
Aluko said Kwankwaso and the entire membership of the old NWC led by Kawu had since been expelled, and INEC was appropriately and duly informed in that regard.
He noted that INEC had no powers to meddle in the internal affairs of a political party.
“Once again, may we use this public space to remind the INEC, through its chairman, that we have requested the urgent need to update their records of the National Executive Committee of the NNPP.
“It is instructive to indicate herein that the constitution of the NNPP is supreme and binding on all members, without prejudice to the overarching Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the Electoral Act.
“With the nation’s Constitution being the unquestionable ground norm, every other establishment in Nigeria derives its powers of establishment and operations from the said Constitution,” Aluko said.
According to him, the mandate and powers of INEC to register, control, and regulate political parties are constitutionally provided and the party is aware of this.
“However, INEC does not have powers to meddle in the internal administration and management of political parties.
“Otherwise, it will be equivalent to an avoidable breach of the constitutional rights of Nigerians to associate freely.
“What we try to put across herein is simple and unambiguous.
“The extant powers of the board members of the NNPP about resolution of the party’s internal matters are very clear.
“The board has powers to call to order, any member who acts contrary to its norms,” he said.
The BOT chairman said that NNPP chieftains like Kwankwaso, Elder Buba Galadima and the sacked and defunct NWC led by Kawu had been in gross abuse of the constitutional provisions of the new NNPP with impunity.
According to him, the unceremonious exit of its former National Chairman, Prof. Rufai Alkali, Prof. Angwe Samuel, and Senator Suleiman Hunkuyi among others were pointers that all was not well with the internal administration of the party.
He decried issues concerning corruption, high-handedness, lack of transparency, and accountability on the part of the defunct NNPP National Working Committee (NWC) members.
“All these avoidable acts of gross misconduct led to the invitation of the concerned persons by the Board of Trustees for explanation but they refused to provide answers to the queries.
“Indeed, the board had to invoke its inherent powers by calling them all to order and decisively expelling them.
“The action of the board, having subsequently been ratified by the General Assembly of the Party, has been communicated to the Chairman of INEC, and the commission duly acknowledged the same and pledged to update its records.
“The surprising and very embarrassing thing today is that INEC is still dealing with the expelled members of the party.
“This is aside from the fact that this matter is pending before a Federal High Court, with INEC duly served and notified,” Aluko said.
Chuks Okocha
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