General polls: Reps consider bill to conclude appeals before inauguration
The House of Representatives is considering a bill seeking to alter the 1999 Constitution to provide for the determination of all appeals arising from election petition tribunals prior to the swearing-in of the President-elect, Vice President-elect, governors-elect, and deputy governor-elect, among others.
The bill introduced on the Green Chamber floor in October 2024 may be listed for debate in the first quarter of 2025.
Sponsored by the member representing Darazo/Ganjuwa Federal Constituency, Bauchi State, Mansur Soro, the proposed legislation seeks to alter Section 285 of the Constitution with the insertion of sub-section one to read, “All appeals arising from the presidential, governorship, national and state Assemblies election petition, tribunals shall be determined by the appellate courts prior to the swearing-in of candidates returned as winners by the Independent National Electoral Commission.”
Similarly, a new subsection-285(ii) is inserted into the Principal Act to read, “The Independent National Electoral Commission shall prepare its guidelines and timelines of activities to provide sufficient time for the determination of all appeal cases before swearing-in of candidates.”
Also included are members-elect of the national and state Assemblies.
Speaking exclusively with our correspondent, Soro said the bill seeks to lessen the distraction that electoral litigation creates to governance to the executive and legislative arms of government at both the centre and the sub-nationals.
He said, “INEC will be able to organise its guidelines and election timelines to accommodate the litigation period when this bill becomes law. We are trying to see that all appeals arising from the conduct of elections are concluded before the May 29 handover date as the case may be.”
The PDP lawmaker also added that the amendment to the Constitution and the Electoral Act would leave the courts with no option but to accelerate electoral cases before them in accordance with the provisions of the law.
“The courts are the creation of the law. If the law provides that they should conclude election cases within a specified period of time, they have to abide by it,” Soro added.
The federal lawmaker while making a case for the conduct nsoderation of the bill reminded the parliament of the dangers of swearing-in-elected national political officers before the conclusion of electoral cases by the courts.
“Once you allow swearing-in to take place before litigations are concluded, distraction will take effects on governance and the public treasury. Just imagine the tens of billions of naira governors alone are spending on sorting their cases at appeal and apex courts.
“This should not be allowed to continue because this money comes from the public treasury. As a government elected by the people, we must do everything to safeguard taxpayers” money,” he added.
