The National Youth Council of Nigeria (NYCN) has faulted the National Assembly over its refusal to amend the Electoral Amendment Act as requested by President Muhammadu Buhari saying the move is not in the interest of national development.
NYCN President, Amb. Solomon Adodo who stated this at a press conference in Abuja on Friday argued that the measure would lead to the total disenfranchisement of over 70 percent of potential candidates who are mainly youths.
The youths group said it was unfortunate that over 75 percent of those affected under the extant electoral Act are youths who are appointees of local government Chairmen, Governors, the President and legislators.
NYCN called on both Chambers of the National Assembly to immediately expedite actions to expunge the said section 84(12) within the next 48 hours.
The youths group thereby threatened that commencing from Tuesday 15th March 2022, embark on a mass protest to press home their demands.
The group declared: “This law if allowed to stand will be an abuse of the not too young to run Act as most youth will automatically be disqualified.
“The said clause is nothing but an attempt to insulate the legislators from healthy democratic competition as a vast number of credible aspirants would already have been swept away by the said law.
“The law could also be interpreted with respect to Party primaries which automatically disqualifies all appointees seeing that their resignation should have taken effect six months to the Aprul/June primaries.
“Whereas the Section 42 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as amended seek to protect every citizen from any from of discrimination, Section 84(12) boldly discriminates against political appointees by barring them from contesting or voting in Party primaries unless such an appointee. This same law on the flip-side offers undue advantage to the legislators by permitting them to remain on their seats while contesting.
“Whereas the 1999 Constitution as amended provides that a Public Servant must resign 30 days before the conduct of an election in which he is to participate, Section 318 of the Constitution defines who a Public Servant is and that excludes appointees Howbeit our legislators deliberately carved section 84(12) to target political appointees and eliminate them from the space making the legislators the main active political players on the field.
“Above all the said section 84 (12) will be a prime precursor of a Constitutional crisis in which the members of the National Assembly will be the beneficiaries while our democracy will be in shambles.
“This is not only an attempt by the National Assembly to renege on its promise but also an affront on the President and a betrayal of public trust.”