N’Asembly won’t stop off-cycle elections, says Ondo Senator

The Senator representing Ondo Central, Adeniyi Adegbomire, has declared that off-season elections are strengthening Nigerian democracy, saying it allows the votes of the people to count.

Adegbomire, a member of the All Progressives Congress also noted that any society where leadership is installed by means other than holding the mandate of the people is on its way to perdition.

He stated this in Akure, the state capital, on Monday.

Adegbomire, who is the Chairman, Senate Committee on Agriculture Colleges and Institutions, noted that based on the interpretation of the Nigeria law, the National Assembly won’t pass a law to stop off-season elections in Nigeria, reiterating that it strengthens the democracy.

He said, “It is a constitutional matter and the Supreme Court has been clear about it. The constitution says you shall be sworn in for a term of four years. That four years start from the day you were sworn in as a governor or president.

“The Electoral Act says you must have two-thirds of Local Governments’ majority votes but the constitution doesn’t stipulate that. So, there a criteria for winning an election and there are other criteria for tenure. The tenure is in the constitution. Technically, it means that the man who occupied the seat before he was thrown out was not duly elected and was technically, never a governor.

“However, the constitution and the Electoral Act recognise that while he is still in the office, even if he’s removed at the tribunal, so there won’t be lacuna, he will continue to be governor, until the final decision.”

“But he was never a governor, according to the law, why should someone who should have been the governor govern for only the remaining years? So, it is a constitutional matter. For, we will always have off-season elections.”

He also opined that anyone that was removed by the court should not be recognised as having ruled that state as he said, the person was a never governor.

“We need to be clear about it and my position is that anyone that is removed by the court shouldn’t be recognised as having ruled that state because he was never governor.

“However, the constitution recognises his actions while in power. Because if the constitution doesn’t recognise that, it is synonymous with saying the salaries he had paid workers, and the contracts awarded are illegal and shouldn’t be recognised. That won’t be possible. It will be too much and there will be total chaos,” he stated.

The senator stressed the need to bridge the time between party primaries and elections to create more time for litigation so as to resolve all issues about the primary before the main election.

He said, “Why don’t we abridge the time between the primary and elections? We have a committee in the Senate that is looking at that and that’s one of the things I’ve advocated. Abridge the time between the primary and election and create more time for litigation.

“For example, if you do your primary in April, you must do the election 90 days after the primary, and then you have six months for litigation because there will always be litigation. Some people will always feel aggrieved, rightly or wrongly.”

Former president Goodluck Jonathan had on Saturday called on the National Assembly to enact a law stopping off-cycle elections.

He expressed concern that if the country continued with off-season polls, a time would come when the presidential election might become an off-cycle election.

Jonathan stated this during an interview with reporters after voting in Saturday’s off-cycle Bayelsa State governorship election at Ward 13 Otuoke, Ogbia LGA.

He described off-season as odd and not a global best practice, urging the National Assembly to ensure the practice was blocked.

He said, “Basically this is an off-season election. I get worried about the issue of off-season elections, and I will use this unique opportunity to plead with the National Assembly that we need to block off-season elections.

“It is very odd, it’s not a global best practice. A country can elect its people at different times, like the American election and some countries. They may not elect everybody at the same time but the only time they go on to conduct elections, they elect everybody that is supposed to be elected.

“If we continue with this trend of off-season elections based on the interpretation of our law by a judicial officer, it will come to a time when the presidential election in Nigeria may be conducted off-season.”