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UNCONSTITUTIONALITY OF YAHAYA BELLO BEING SWORN IN AS KOGI STATE GOVERNOR


THE UNCONSTITUTIONALITY OF YAHAYA BELLO BEING SWORN IN AS KOGI STATE GOVERNOR

By

Femi Aborisade, Esq.

 

The swearing-in of Yahaya Bello as Governor of Kogi State appears unconstitutional not just because he was sworn-in without a Governor but fundamentally and primarily because he had no validly nominated Deputy Governor. This is because his nominated Deputy Governor publicly rejected his nomination as Deputy Governor. Faleke also claimed he informed INEC to discountenance his name as Deputy to Bello.

 

Under Section 187(1) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999, as amended, it would appear that the nomination of Yahaya Bello as Governor was unconstitutional and therefore invalid. If the nomination of Yahaya Bello as Governor was unconstitutional and invalid, it goes without saying that his being sworn-in as Governor (with or without a Deputy) remains equally unconstitutional, invalid, null and void. This is in line with the hallowed principle of law established in Macfoy v. UAC Ltd [1962] AC 152, that one cannot put something upon nothing and expect it to stand; it will surely fall and crumble.


 

The nomination and swearing-in of Yahaya Bello as Governor of Kogi State appear to be vitiated because, section 187(1) of the Constitution provides that “a candidate for the office of Governor of a State shall not be deemed to have been validly nominated for such office unless he nominates another candidate as his associate for his running for the office of Governor, who is to occupy the office of Deputy Governor; and that candidate shall be deemed to have been duly elected to the office of Deputy Governor IF the candidate who nominated him is duly elected as Governor …”.

 

Therefore the constitutional invalidity of the swearing-in of Yahaya Bello as Governor of Kogi State can be conceptualised from two points of view, within the above quoted provisions of section 187(1) of the Constitution.

 

The first plank of the constitutional invalidity of Bello as Governor of Kogi State is from the standpoint of Faleke who publicly rejected his nomination as Deputy Governor. The second plank of the constitutional invalidity of Bello as Governor of Kogi State is within the context of the proviso in section 187(1) beginning with the word “if” underlined above as well as section 181(1) of the same Constitution, which tends to support that Faleke (and no other person) is entitled to be sworn in as Governor of Kogi State on the basis that only he (Faleke) and no other person can inherit the majority of votes won on the joint ticket with the Late Audu, who, on account of sudden death, was unable to be sworn in as Governor. It would appear absurd, unjust, illogical and inequitable for any person in Bello’s situation to be sworn in on the basis of the support of just about six thousand votes or so, and within the context of sections 181(1) and 187(1) of the Constitution.

 

Femi Aborisade, Esq.

30th January 2016.

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