Statutory Delegates Can Vote, Court Rules

A federal high court in Kano has ruled that statutory delegates can vote in the All Progressive Congress (APC) primary. The verdict came after a lawsuit by Mas'ud Doguwa, Habibu Sani and Bilyaminu Shinkafi. The President of the Senate, the National Chair of the APC, the Speaker of the House and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) were named first through fourth defendants in the lawsuit labelled FHC/KN/CS/137/2022. In the lawsuit, filed May 24, plaintiffs asked the court to determine whether Section 84(8) of the 2022 Electoral Code barred statutory delegates from voting during primary elections. Statutory delegates are current and past holders of public office - they include presidents and governors. Recently, the National Assembly passed legislation to allow statutory delegates to vote at meetings and conventions.

The bill followed an attempt by the legislature to correct an "error" relating to Section 84(8) of the Elections Act. Ovie Omo-Agege, Deputy Senate President who chaired the Senate debate ahead of the bill's passage, had said that the bill amending the election law, approved by President Muhammadu Buhari in February, only recognizes ad hoc delegates. However, the President has yet to approve the Statutory Delegates Bill. In Friday's judgment, A.M. Liman, the presiding judge, found that Section 84(8) does not bar statutory delegates from voting in primary elections. In the Court's view, Section 84(8) "cannot be construed to exempt statutory delegates under Section 223 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) and Article 20(iv)(c) from voting at the Assembly, the Congress or Assembly ) of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Bylaws allowing the statutory delegation to vote at Congress, Convention or Assembly”.  This happened after INEC ordered the People's Democratic Party (PDP) to use only statutory delegates for its primary elections.

However, since Buhari has yet to approve the related bill, the PDP had issued a statement ordering that only three ad hoc delegates per ward- elected at ward congresses - and one national delegate per LGA - elected at LG congresses - can vote at its area code and convention.

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