Since the death of Audu Abubakar, the Governorship
candidate of APC and the leading candidate in the
yet-to-be concluded Kogi state Governorship
election, tongues have been wagging and opinions
have been divided on what should be the next line
with respect to the said election. To some, the
election should be outrightly cancelled because the
Governorship candidate of APC is gone. To some
others, the APC should be disqualified for having
'No Candidate', while some others opined that the
APC should nominate a new governorship candidate
to complete the process.
Firstly , the election can't be cancelled because
INEC has NO power according to the Electoral Act
(2010) and the 1999 Constitution to cancel any
election when declared. It lies with the COURT. The
only way election can be cancelled is when both the
Governorship and Deputy Governorship candidates
of a political party dies. In this case, the Deputy
Governorship candidate of APC, James Faleke is
still alive. Hence, INEC has no choice but to
continue with the process.
Secondly, APC followed the legal process in the
nomination of Audu Abubakar and Hon James
Faleke as the Governorship and Deputy
Governorship candidates respectively. The Electoral
Act never prescribe disqualification of political party
on account of death of its Governorship or Deputy
Governorship candidate. Considering that the
Electoral Act and Supreme Court judgement
maintained that political parties not candidates
stand for election, it simply means APC remains in
the race and in pole position to form new Kogi
state government when Idris Wada's tenure elapse
despite the demise of Audu.
Why Hon James Faleke Should Succeed Audu
That established, the next is who should succeed
Audu Abubakar as APC candidate? Let us recall that
the Electoral Act and Constitution was silent on
what should happen in the event that a Governor-
elect denounce his mandate before his inauguration
as at 1998. When Atiku Abubakar rescinded his
mandate for the VP candidate of Segun Obasanjo of
PDP, INEC felt there was need for a fresh PDP
candidate for a new election. PDP and the
Adamawa state Deputy-Gov-elect Boni Haruna as
then was went to court. The SC ruled that PDP won
the election with Atiku/Haruna as candidates, and in
the eyes of the law, Atiku was 'dead'. Hence,
Haruna should replace Atiku as PDP Governorship
candidate and be sworn-in as Adamawa state
Governor. After the judgement, the Electoral Act and
Constitution were amended to reflect the SC
interpretation. In this situation, considering the fact
that the law allows for the Deputy to succeed his/
her boss in the event of death of the Governor-elect
(after election has been concluded) and the
Governor (after inauguration), it is only normal and
in accordance with the positions of the SC
judgements and the law tthat Hon James Faleke,
the APC Kogi state Deputy Governorship candidate
be upgraded to the substantive Governorship-
candidate of APC, while the party nominates a new
running mate.
The Position of Running Mate Is For Purpose Like
This
We also have to realise that the purpose of running
mate is not to 'fill space' but to step-in in case of
any eventuality of the main candidate. This is why
the VP assumes the role of President in event of
death, and not the runner-up in the Presidential
election. It is also the reason the VP-elect assume
the position of President-elect in event of death of
the President-elect and not the runner-up of the
election. This is same reason the APC Deputy
Governorship-candidate of Kogi state (James
Faleke) will/should assume the position of
Governorship-candidate and not the runner-up in the
APC Primary election. Hence, the APC should 'do
the needful and nominate a new Deputy-Gov
candidate.
A Fresh Primary Is Illegal and Unconstitutional
However, should APC elect for a fresh primary, then
that will amount to illegality as no section of the
Electoral Act and the Constitution give room for
primary when election is ongoing. I believe that the
court will nullify it. It is my belief that the only
legitimate thing is for Faleke to be made the
candidate.
Why I'm Behind Hon James Faleke's Ascension:
My position on this subject is precipitated on the
need for being on the side of justice irrespective of
who the beneficiary may be. Justice is justice, there
is no basis for opposing justice because it doesn't
favor our ethnic or political scheme. For those
against Faleke on basis of his non-Igala heritage, I
urge you to accept the new development for in the
interest of the state.
#TonyeBarcanista
No comments:
Post a Comment