By Chinelo Obogo
Lagos All Progressives Congress (APC) Democrats, a political group, has demanded that the state congress of the party held recently should be cancelled, alleging that it is unconstitutional.
In a press briefing in Lagos, yesterday, the leader of Lagos APC collectives, Fouad Oki, said on October 6, 2021, a Federal High Court, sitting in Abuja, delivered a ruling on the legality of APC to hold its congresses in Lagos based on the unconstitutional ‘balkanisation’ of 57 local governments and local council development areas (LCDAs) as opposed to 20 councils and 245 wards.
He said the congress held in Lagos is unconstitutional because delegates were drawn for the 57 councils and LCDAs contrary to the court ruling and demanded the congress be cancelled and a new one conducted.
He said: “The court only recognises, in view of Section 3(2),(6) and part 1 of the First Schedule to the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Section 156 of the Electoral Act, 2010 (as amended) and Article 33(i) of the APC constitution, 2014 (as amended) and the APC guidelines for state congresses on delegates that emanated from 245 wards either elected or statuary. Therefore, all statuary delegates, current councillors, vice chairmen and chairmen that are products of the balkanised local government and LCDAs in Lagos State, are not only unqualified but ineligible to participate in any congress of the party in Lagos State…”