•Electoral Act: PDP joins battle against Malami, secures Appeal Court order

The Court of Appeal has ordered the Attorney General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami, and others to desist from taking steps capable of frustrating hearing in an appeal filed against judgment of a Federal High Court which ordered removal of section 84 (12) from the new Electoral Act.

This is as the appellate court granted permission to the People’s Democratic Party to join as an interested party in an appeal against the High Court judgment which voided and struck down Section 84 (12) of the Act.

The PDP was granted permission by the Owerri division of the Appeal Court to file its appeal as an interested person against the decision of the Federal High Court, Umuahia, on the order for removal of the section from the Electoral law.

In an enrolment order of the Court of Appeal obtained in Abuja on Sunday by our correspondent and signed by the Presiding Justice of the court, Justice Rita Pemu, the leave granted PDP to file an appeal was occasioned by submissions of its counsel, D.C Denwigwe, a senior advocate.

The appeal marked CA/OW/87/2022 has Chief Nduka Edede and the Attorney General of the Federation AGF as the 1st and 2nd respondents respectively.

The enroll order read in part “ Upon reading the application herein filed on 23-3-2022 with an affidavit in support sworn to by John Eronini on the same date and after hearing DC Denwigwe SAN for the applicant and Chief Emeka Ozoani SAN for the 1st respondent, order is hereby granted as follows;

“Leave is hereby granted to the applicant to appeal as a person interested in this appeal CA/OW/87/2022.

“Due to the exigencies of this appeal and its constitutional colourisation, there is a need to hear this matter expeditiously.

“Accordingly, the appellant is hereby given up to Tuesday, April 12, 2022, to file its notice of appeal and the parties are to file their respective briefs of arguments within three days from the date of service of the notice and record of appeal on the respondents. There shall be a further three days given to the appellant to file a reply.

“Parties should desist from taking any step to frustrate the hearing of the appeal. The matter is adjourned to May 4, 2022, for the hearing of the appeal. A fresh hearing notice will be issued on the 2nd to the 12th respondents”.

A Federal High Court, Umuahia division had on March 18 declared as invalid and unconstitutional section 84 (12) of the amended Electoral Act.

Justice Evelyn Anyadike in a judgment ordered the AGF to delete the said section from the amended Electoral Act.

Section 84(12) of the Electoral Act provides that, “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.”

However, the National Assembly which enacted the contentious section 84 (12) had lodged an appeal at the Court of Appeal in Owerri against the Umuahia court judgment ordering the AGF to delete Section 84(12) of the amended Electoral Act.

Amid the controversy, governors and lawmakers have asked their appointees seeking elective office to resign before the end of April.

However, Malami as well as other appointees of the President nursing political ambitions have all refused to resign.

On Saturday, the Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, formally declared his interest in the Presidency. Others who are expected to announce their ambitions in the coming weeks include- the Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige; the Minister of Aviation, Hadi Sirika, among others.

Human rights lawyer, Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa (SAN), said political appointees who have declared their intention to run for elective positions without resigning are doing themselves and political parties no good.

He said political parties and appointees who violate the provision of section 84 (12) of the Electoral Act were taking a huge risk.

Adegboruwa added, “I believe that all political appointees who have currently indicated their interest but have not resigned are taking a very huge risk and their political parties are risking it along with them. It is clear from Section 84 (12) that they are not supposed to participate in any congress or convention, much less their indication of interest to contest. It is a dangerous game for any political appointee either a minister or an aide to indicate interest in office without first resigning, it is a big risk.”

Another senior advocate, Ifedayo Adedipe, said although the coast is unclear at the moment, appointees could be affected if the Supreme Court rules in favour of the contentious provision.

He said, “First of all, that section remains unclear until it is set aside finally by the final court. The high court declared it unconstitutional and for the moment you could say they are entitled to ignore it but they run a risk in that if at the end of the day the section is upheld and then they have not resigned before participating.

Also, if the primary is going to take place and they went there without resigning and if they win, somebody can use that to nullify their victory.”