From Ndubuisi Orji, Abuja
One of the defining features of the 2023 General Elections was the provision of the Electoral Act 2022 which compels government appointees, seeking to contest party primaries for the last election, to resign their appointments prior to the exercise.
Specifically, Section 84(12) of the Electoral Act, 2022, bars political appointees at every level from seeking the nomination of their political parties for any elective office. It notes 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.”
Thus, several serving minsters and other government appointees who aspired to different elective offices had to quit the plum positions to be eligible to participate in the nomination for party tickets. Before the last amendment to the electoral, it did not matter whether or not an aspirant was a government appointee or not. The resignation of appointees, seeking to contest for elective offices, was usually at the instance of their principals.
In the run-up to the 2027 general elections, the House of Representatives is seeking to extend same rule to elected party officials eying elective offices. This move, according to the promoters, is to create a level playing field in the contests for party nominations.
Recently, the House introduced a bill to bar serving officials of political parties from contesting for elective offices. The proposed legislation is titled, “A bill for an Act to alter the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended) to provide for compulsory resignation of national and state executive members of political parties seeking elective government positions and for related matters,” HB 1381.
The bill, which is sponsored by the member representing Darazo/Ganjuwa Federal Constituency of Bauchi State, Mansur Soro, according to the explanatory memorandum, is intended to enhance “transparency and fairness in the activities of political parties relating to primary election.”
Specifically, the proposed legislation is seeking to alter Section 223 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) to introduce a sub section C, which stipulates that “any member of the national or state executive committee of a political party contesting for elective government position shall resign his membership of the executive committee of such party at least 30 days before the primary election.”
Soro, a member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) told Daily Sun that the key objective was to ensure a level playing field for everyone seeking the nomination of a political party for elective office. The lawmaker explained that when serving party officials contest for primaries while retaining their positions, it gives them undue advantage.
According to him “the objective is simply to ensure a level playing ground for all. Some party executives contest the primary election while occupying their seats and that gives them unfair advantage.”
Expectedly the proposal is generating diverse reaction in the polity. While members of the civil society consider the move as a good development, political actors believe it is akin to meddling into the affairs of political parties.
Ironically, the issue of whether or not party officials should seek for party nominations while still holding on to their offices has been a bone of contention especially in the major political parties. Whereas, in the smaller political parties it is common for party officials to double as candidates of the party during elections.
For instance, the dispute in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) over the position of National Secretary is attributable to this. The party’s National Secretary, Senator Samuel Anyanwu, had emerged the opposition party’s candidate in the last Imo State gubernatorial election.
In the aftermath of Anyanwu’s emergence, the South East chapter of the PDP, at a meeting in Enugu State, in 2023, nominated a former National Youth leader of the party, Sunday Ude-Okoye to replace him as National Secretary. The party had argued that it is unacceptable for Anyanwu to be gubernatorial candidate while still retaining his position as PDP scribe. Nevertheless, the issue, which has polarised the different organs of the opposition party is currently a subject of litigation before the Supreme Court.
A public affairs analyst, Jide Ojo, says the proposed law, if eventually enacted, will help to create a level playing field for aspirants for elective positions. Ojo told Daily Sun that since it is the party that sponsors candidates for elections, it, therefore makes some sense for party officials, seeking to contest for elective offices, to first resign their positions in the party.
According to hm, “if they want to extend it to party administration that if for instance, a chairman of a party wants to contest as governor of a state or president, he needs to then resign, I think that there is merit in that. Because we know that it is the party that sponsors candidate.
“What we are seeing with some of the other parties, I don’t want to call them fringe parties, it is the party chairman that also transmutes to their presidential candidate. If it applies to civil servants or public servants that they have to resign ahead of primaries, I think there is merit in it; to ask party chieftains who wants to run for political office in their states or the country to resign ahead of their primary, so that a level playing field will be created.”
The Chairman of Civil Society Organisations (CSO) Peering Advocacy and Advancement Center in Africa (PAACA) Ezenwa Nwangwu agrees. Nwangwu, who is an electoral reform advocate told Daily Sun that party officials as members of the National Working Committee (NWC) of the respective political parties make the rules governing the conduct of party primaries. He argued that it is against fair play for same party leaders to participate as aspirants in party primaries, without first resigning their positions.
“The challenge is, if somebody is a member of NWC or NEC (National Executive Committee) they are the decision-making organ of the party. Is not fair to make a rule and then contest under the rule you made. There is something unethical and immoral about that. For me, I think it is proper that if you hold a key party position, you should be able to excuse yourself if you want to contest for a party primary,” Nwangwu stated.
Nevertheless, a member of the PDP National Working Committee (NWC), told Daily Sun that the proposed legislation, if passed into law, would amount to meddling in the internal affairs of political parties. The party official said the National Assembly should also extend same rules to members of the parliament.
According to him, “I think, because they are elective positions, if that law is enacted, it should apply to the National Assembly too. They (NWC) are elected for a term. That should be an issue of the party management. It is an elected position for a term. If you now say people must resign, given the way party organs are structured, deputies are not members of the NWC.
“Let’s assume the Organising Secretary, the Publicity Secretary and some key officers like Legal Advisers decide to resign; you have the critical organs: it is like going to the internal affairs of the party and regulating it. Let the party on their own say, yes, for this purpose, we need to do this.”
Similarly, the Labour Party (LP) says there is nothing wrong with party official, interested in elective offices contesting for party primaries, while retaining their positions in the party. According to the LP, whether or not party officials, interested in elective offices resign their position or not before seeking for party nomination should not be the business of the parliament.
The LP National Publicity Secretary Obiorah Ifoh, told Daily Sun that the bill “is dead on arrival,” noting that “there is no where in the world where such things are practiced.” Ifoh stated further that the focus should be on members of the executive arm of government, as they allegedly have undue influence on elections more than any other group.
“The constitution of some political parties permits party officials to contest elections. It is only when you win election that you will resign. In a situation where party constitution has given you the right to remain in office and contest election, I think it should be left like that so that democracy can thrive. Any other thing outside that will not augur well for democracy.
“I think things should be left the way they are. But let the parties decide. For instance, in Nigeria there are political parties that allows their members in party offices to step aside to contest election. But most political parties in Nigeria do not have that in their law. That is not where our problem is. Our problem is in the executive arm that compel the electoral officers to do whatever they want. That is where the problem is,” the Labour Party spokesperson added.