SPOTTED: In revised electoral bill, only aspirants can challenge credentials of candidates

The revised electoral act amendment bill has barred voters from challenging the credentials of the candidate of any political party.

The provision is contained in the revised bill that was passed by the two chambers of the national assembly last week.

Compulsory direct primaries for political parties and electronic transmission of election results are among the amendments proposed by the national assembly.

President Muhammadu Buhari rejected the compulsory direct primaries for political parties, saying the provision “violates the spirit of democracy”.

The national assembly deleted the clause afterwards.

In the clean copy of the bill which will be sent to Buhari for assent, the national assembly empowered only aspirants to challenge the credentials of any individual that emerges as the candidate of any political party.

The new section 31 (5) of the revised bill as seen by TheCable reads: “Any aspirant who participated in the primaries of his political party who has reasonable grounds to believe that any information given by his political party’s candidate in the affidavit or any document submitted by that candidate in relation to his constitutional requirements to contest the election is false, may file a suit at the Federal High Court against that candidate seeking a declaration that the information contained in the affidavit is false.”

The old section 31(5) reads: “Any person who has reasonable grounds to believe that any information given by a candidate in the affidavit or any document submitted by that candidate is false may file a suit at the Federal High Court, High Court of a state or FCT against such a person seeking a declaration that the information contained in the affidavit.”

The old provision gave power to voters to challenge credentials of candidates they believe are false.

Over the years, there have been many suits at the courts challenging the credentials of candidates.

In the revised harmonised bill, TheCable also observed that the national assembly removed the consensus mode of selecting candidates as passed by the senate.

Parties are allowed to pick their candidates through direct primary or indirect primary polls, according to section 87 of the revised harmonised version of the bill.