- He described the election conducted by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, as illegal because the constitution was not adhered to
A chieftain of the New Nigerian Peoples Party, NNPP, Buba Galadima, has voiced his displeasure at the just-concluded by-elections in the country.
He described the election conducted last weekend by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, as illegal because the constitution was not adhered to.
The NNPP chieftain stated this on Monday while fielding questions on Channels TV’s Politics Today programme.
Galadima accused INEC of violating a section of the Constitution which stipulates that the commission is under an obligation to conduct a by-election within three months whenever a vacancy occurs, but some of the by-elections are held two years after the seat became vacant.
Galadima noted that some of the vacancies where INEC conducted by-elections had exceeded three months, urging Nigerians to challenge them in court.
He said: “Well, the by-elections have come and gone, except it’s being trailed by so many issues, depending on which side of the point you look at it.
“In the first place, I want to make a very important issue out of these by-elections. In fact, all of them were conducted illegally by INEC.
“When a vacancy occurs, INEC is under an obligation to conduct a by-election within three months.
“Some of the by-elections are being held two years after. For example, the ones in Kano, or at least one in Kano, it was an election that was declared inconclusive by the APC in 2023.
“So if the judiciary is upcoming, and if anybody goes to court to challenge those elections, they could be declared null and void because that is what the Constitution says, not even the Electoral Act.
“This is because when a vacancy occurs, INEC is under an obligation to conduct a by-election within three months. Some of the by-elections are being held two years after.”