From Godwin Tsa, Abuja

Sometime in July 2021, the Supreme Court raised the red flag on the legality of the Governor Mai Mala Buni-led Caretaker and Extraordinary Convention Planning Committee (CECPC) of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).

Three justices of the apex court had, while delivering their minority judgment in an appeal filed by the then candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Eyitayo Jegede, in the Ondo State governorship election of October 9, 2020, won by the incumbent governor, Rotimi Akeredolu, held that Buni’s acting leadership of the APC was an incurable constitutional error, which invalidated Akeredolu’s nomination as the party’s candidate, because it was signed and passed to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) by Buni.

That pronouncement was rooted on the provision of Section 183 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended) to the effect that: “The governor shall not, during the period when he holds office, hold any other executive office or paid employment in any capacity whatsoever.”

Responding to the minority judgment of the Supreme Court, the Minister of State for Labour and Employment, Festus Keyamo, had warned his party (APC) of imminent legal tussles if Governor Mala Buni of Yobe State remained its interim leader.

While hinging his reasons on the split decision of the Supreme Court to uphold Akeredolu’s victory as governor of Ondo State, Keyamo said the APC escaped potential defeat due to “little technicality,” which may not be applicable in subsequent court cases.

Keyamo said the ruling party would have lost the case if Mr. Jegede had joined Mr. Buni in the suit.

“The little technical point that saved Gov. Akeredolu was that Jegede failed to join Gov. Mai Mala Buni in the suit. Jegede was challenging the competence of Gov. Mai Mala Buni as a sitting governor to run the affairs of the APC as chairman of the caretaker committee.

“He contended that this is against Section 183 of the 1999 Constitution, which states that a sitting governor shall not, during the period when he holds office, hold any other executive office or paid employment in any capacity whatsoever. In other words, had Buni been joined in the suit, the story may have been different today as we would have lost Ondo State to the PDP,” he noted.

Keyamo said the technicality found therein in the judgement may string chains of suits from APC members to question the legitimacy of the 13-month interim leadership of Buni to organise congresses and national convention.

He highlighted the continuous leadership of the Yobe State governor as a breach of Article 17 of the APC constitution, adding that the party should stop its proposed congresses by the former’s leadership or risk imminent division.

“The planned congresses across the country slated for this weekend must immediately be suspended because it will be an exercise in futility as analysed above. The competence of Gov. Mai Mala Buni to organise the congresses has been called to question by the Supreme Court,” he said, calling for an urgent NEC meeting to appoint new interim leadership, anyone holding any executive position in any government establishment.

“Alternatively, the board of trustees of the party, which includes Mr. President, can be activated to organise a national convention, in line with Article 13 of the APC constitution, where it is given such powers. Those powers can be delegated at the meeting to a committee in line with the APC constitution, which will run the party and plan the convention. The new exco can then plan for congresses,” he added.

Keyamo was supported by Dr. Kayode Ajulo, a constitutional lawyer and a former secretary of  the Labour Party, who equally warned the APC of unforeseen circumstances if Buni continued as the then caretaker chairman of the party.

Ajulo had expressed fears that the presidential candidate of the APC and other candidates of the party may face a similar fate.

He said: “It is a plague that could have been avoided, if only they took my position on Governor Buni’s chairmanship misadventures seriously. But the judgement has vindicated me.”

Related News

In consonance with the minority judgment of the Supreme Court, a Federal High Court had in a recent decision voided the nomination of Osun State governor, Adegboyega Oyetola, and his deputy, Benedict Alabi, as candidates of the party in the July governorship election.

The suit, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/468/2022, has Buni, former acting chairman of the APC, and four others as defendants.

Justice Emeka Nwite of the Abuja division of the court, who delivered the judgment, predicated his decision on the facts that Buni, who submitted their names to INEC, violated the provisions of Section 183 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and Section 82(3) of the Electoral Act, 2022.

The court also held that Buni acted in contravention of the provision of Section 183 of the Constitution when he held dual executive positions as the governor of Yobe State and the chairman of the National Caretaker Committee of APC.

In the present case, now on appeal, Buni organised the party’s convention where Senator Abdullahi Adamu emerged as the party’s national chairman.

Adamu subsequently conducted the APC presidential primary, which produced Bola Tinubu as the party’s candidate for the 2023 election.

Justice Nwite said the decisions taken by Buni, including forwarding the names of Oyetola and Alabi to INEC, amounted to a nullity in law.

Meantime, the judgment of Justice Nwite has been subjected to the scrutiny of the Court of Appeal with respect to an appeal filed thereto by the Ogun State Governor, Oyetola and his political platform.

But that did not close the door of litigation on the legality or otherwise of the Buni-led Caretaker Committee of the APC.

A fresh suit has just been filed by the PDP, at the Abuja division of the Supreme Court, seeking to disqualify all candidates of the APC from contesting the 2023 general election.

In the suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1864/2022, the PDP is challenging the legality or otherwise of the process that produced both national officers of the party and its candidates for the 2023 polls.

The opposition party predicated its legal action on the subsisting judgment of Justice Nwite, which declared as illegal, unlawful and unconstitutional all actions and activities that were carried out by the Buni-led committee, among which included the nomination of Oyetola for the recently conducted gubernatorial election in Osun State.

Among other reliefs sought, the PDP is urging the court to disqualify all candidates that were nominated to INEC by the Buni-led Extraordinary Convention Committee of the APC.

Among the 53 persons listed as defendants in the fresh suit are the presidential candidate of the APC, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, his running mate, Kashim Shetima, as well as all governorship candidates of the party and their deputies.

The suit is further seeking to disqualify all APC candidates for the senatorial and House of Representatives elections.