Senior lawyers expose 1 major factor to threaten 2022 polls, alerts INEC of consequence
- Ahead of the 2023 general elections, controversies have begun to emerge in the build-up to next month's decider
- The electoral body, INEC has been caught in the mix of all these controversies in relation to the new Electoral Act of 2022 as amended
- Section 34 of the 1999 constitution, and section 65 of the Electoral Act were faulted by these lawyers
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Wole Olanipekun (SAN) and Olisa Agbakoba have pointed out a major loophole in the new electoral act of 2022 and the 1999 constitution that could prove detrimental to next month's general elections.
As reported by The Nation newspaper, Olanipekun stated that the power vested in Returning Officers by Section 65 of the Act has the tendency of posing a threat to the seamlessness of the general elections.
Source: Facebook
His colleague, Agbakoba told INEC's boss Prof Mahmood Yakubu to give an extensive clarification of the commission’s position on Section 134 of the 1999 Constitution.
Agbakoba pointed out that section 34 of the Electoral Act which provides requirements to be met by a presidential candidate before being declared winner, should be clarified.
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Faulting section 65 of the Electoral Act, Olanipekun said:
“(1) The decision of the Returning Officer shall be final on any question arising from or relating to – (a) unmarked ballot paper; (b) rejected ballot paper; and (c) declaration of scores of candidates and the return of a candidate provided that the Commission shall have the power within seven days to review the declaration and return where the Commission determines that the said declaration and return was not made voluntarily or was made contrary to the provisions of the law, regulations and guidelines, and manual for the election.
“(2) A decision of the Returning Officer under Sub-section (1) may be reviewed by an election tribunal or court of competent jurisdiction in an election petition proceedings under this Act.”
Olanipekun speaks on imminent consequence
Olanipekun further questioned why such a clause in the section of the Electoral Act passed through the national assembly without appropriate checks.
He made this remark in Ado-Ekiti, the Ekiti state capital during his visit to the state governor, Governor Biodun Oyebanji.
The renowned legal practitioner harped that the consequences of the controversial section of the Electoral Act.
Olanipekun said:
“To me, it is a very dangerous section, so novel in the sense that, here you have a section that empowers a Returning Officer to review his decision within a period of seven days.
”The Returning Officer is not a court of law, not a tribunal, not vested with jurisdiction to exercise quasi-judicial powers or to assume jurisdiction over any matter that is judicial in nature.
Source: Legit.ng
