President Muhammadu Buhari and the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, have filed a suit at the Supreme Court, seeking an interpretation of the controversial clause in the Electoral Amendment Act 2022.
In the suit filed on April 29, Messrs Buhari and Malami who are the plaintiffs listed the National Assembly as the sole defendant,
Section 84 (12) has been a subject of intense litigation and political debate in Nigeria since President Buhari signed the amended Electoral Act 2022 into law in February this year.
Shortly after signing it into law, Mr Buhari had urged the parliament to delete the controversial clause in the Electoral Act, but the National Assembly declined the presidentโs request.
According to Section 84 (12) of the legislation, โNo political appointee at any level shall be a voting delegate or be voted for at the convention or congress of any political party for the purpose of the nomination of candidates for any election.โ
This suit comes weeks after the Federal High Court in Umuahia, Abia State, struck out Section 84 (12) on the ground that it was in conflict with some sections of the Nigerian constitution. Read more…
