2023 Election Law Bulletin: APC may not have a Single valid candidate All over Nigeria – P. D. Pius, Esq.
BY BRIDGET EDOKWE · MAY 5, 2022
Popular Lawyer, P. D. Pius, Esq. has said that the ruling party, All progressive Candidate, APC may not have a Single valid candidate.
Mr. Pius made this revelation in a statement on Thursday, noting that his position is a legal information and not legal advice.
APC appears fixated to self destruction. They gleefully did it in Zamfara during the 2019 election. They are about to do it again. Only that this time around, it may be on a national scale.
A kind of self-slaughter across the whole country. This APCs attempted suicide is running on an autopilot called Form 18.
The said Form 18 is a pracipae affidavit attached to all APC nomination forms which requires all APC candidates to swear on Oath as follows:
“I hereby voluntarily withdraw my candidacy from the contest. My withdrawal is in the best interest of our great party, the All Progressives Congress.”
This will invariably activate the law that such a candidate has validly withdrawn his intention to stand for election. Section 31 of Electoral Act 2022 permit candidates to withdraw their intentions to stand election at anytime before election. It is not by force.
You can withdraw at any time. By signing this form 18, it means the candidate has withdrawn from the election even before the contest begins. Can you imagine that? Allahu Akbar!
Another implication of this form 18 is that it rejects, refuse or invalid the various nominations by members of a political party that is mandatory by virtue of section 30(1) and (5) of Electoral Act 2022 and Paragraph 6 of APC Guidelines for the Nomination of Candidates for 2023 General Elections.
The cumulative effect of which is that every candidate must be nominated by certain number of party members who must sign nominating a particular candidate.
It will be preposterous to suggest that such nominations remain valid when the said nominated candidate has rejected, refused or failed to accept the nomination by signing his withdrawal from the race before commissioner of Oath. The validity of party members nomination is dependant on acceptance or continuous standing of the nominated candidate.
Where such a candidate signs his withdrawal then the nomination becomes rejected, refused, impotent, and invalid without any life. Hallelujah!
The net effect is that, head or tail, signing form 18 in APC nomination forms renders the nomination paper invalid. As both candidate and party must concur to the nomination paper for same to remain valid.
Any signed withdrawal by either the political party or candidate renders the nomination paper invalid. But wait…! Ojuju de follow APC? There will be more in our subsequent editions.
NB: this is a legal information and not legal advice. Kindly engage a lawyer knowledgeable in election law for proper advice. Don’t forget to register for our forth coming election law class
P. D. Pius, Esq.
Abuja, Nigeria
piusdanba@gmail.com
