Chronicles: FAYOSE'S ELIGIBILITY AS EXECUTIVE GOVERNOR

Chronicles: FAYOSE'S ELIGIBILITY AS EXECUTIVE GOVERNOR:                   The qualification of Mr. Ayodele Fayose for the Governorship Election in Ekiti State has left so many questions at the ...

FAYOSE'S ELIGIBILITY AS EXECUTIVE GOVERNOR

        
         The qualification of Mr. Ayodele Fayose for the Governorship Election in Ekiti State has left so many questions at the feet of the electoral body of the nation and law makers as well, prior to his fraud related offenses which led to his impeachment in 2006.
        The PDP presenting a candidate like Ayo Fayose is a great risk that has been questioned by analysts as to whether the Section 182 (e) and (I) of the Nigerian Constitution still exist.
 
Section 182. (1) No person shall be qualified for election
to the office of Governor of a State if -
 
(e) within a period of less than ten years before the
date of election to the office of Governor of a State he has been convicted and sentenced for an offence involving dishonesty or he has been found guilty of the contravention of the code of Conduct; or
 
(i) he has been indicted for embezzlement or fraud by a Judicial Commission of Inquiry or an Administrative Panel of Inquiry or a Tribunal set up under the Tribunals of Inquiry Act, a Tribunals of Inquiry Law or any other law by the Federal or State Government which indictment has been accepted by the Federal or State Government;
          
The electoral body and the People's Democratic Party may have forgotten but the indication of forgery in his HND qualification, fraud related offenses and the murder trial for killing of one Omojola in Ifaki which was suspended for Fayose's being at large still lingers in the memories of Ekiti people!
Some analysts believe that for a state like Ekiti State whose by its motto "Land of Honour"; for them to vote Fayose as Governor will be no surprise because a state that lies with poverty and large percentage of voters are unemployed young graduates, paupers, okada riders, artisans, farmers and peasants whose loyalty and allegiance can be easily bought or swayed by bags of rice and garri and few naira notes at the expense of a disclosed future.
A once impeached governor presented again by the same party at the same state is a tragedy in Nigerian Politics that can never occur in any law minded country and its simultaneously a stain to the honour of Ekiti. Is it the corruption that breeds in the blood line of PDP members or blindfolded Ekiti people???
        If this misconduct can happen under the noses of the electoral body and with the president himself contributing to it, then God help us all.

THE REMOVAL OF IMMUNITY CLAUSE FROM THE 1999 NIGERIAN CONSTITUTION

          

There has been debates around the country whether the immunity clause of the Section 308 of the 1999 Constitution should be removed or not. At the ongoing National Conference, delegates had voted overwhelmingly for the removal of immunity clause from the constitution. The delegates had expressed the feeling that the immunity clause has contributed immensely to the corrupt practises by elected officers in the country's polity.
           By the resolution of the National Conference on Thursday, both the President and elected officers can now be dragged to court over criminal and civil cases.
In this section, we look at the proponents of the removal of the immunity clause from the constitution as voted by delegates during the National Conference. The country is taking a huge turn recently as the delegates are hoping to battle crime and corruption among leaders by removing the immunity clause protecting them; looks like a change is around the corner. There has always been issues of inexplicable actions and cases of unaccountability of public funds surrounding The President and State Governors in recent years while enjoying the benefits of the clause which has serve as a shield.
           Section 308 of the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria states that elected officers mentioned in sub-section (3) of that section are protected from arrest, prosecution, imprisonment, civil and criminal proceedings while their tenure lasts. And if there has been a case standing against any of them before being elected into office, such a case shall terminate or atleast be put to abeyance during the continuation of there tenure in office.
           The former Deputy National Chairman of The Peoples' Democratic Party, Olabode George on Saturday said the immunity clause for presidents and governors should be deleted from the Nigerian Constitution.
Bode George who was convicted for corruption in 2009 and jailed for 30 months supports the idea that it should expunged, proposing that it will start to assist the growth of the nation.
"In America, nobody is above the law. We still remember the Bill Clinton and Monica Lewinsky case while Clinton was in office."

":Exponents say that the fact that people trusted you to manage  their resources does not make you a super human being".

"But the opponents said Nigeria was at the level of Democratic practice where removal of immunity will lead to frivolous cases,". he stated.

"I support the idea that it should be expunged because it will start to assist the growth of the nation," he said.
A cleric, Rev Yinka Adedokun, of the Holy Ghost Harvest Church, Ilorin, on Monday also said the removal of the clause would make leaders more responsible and responsive to citizenry.
"The removal will no doubt make our leaders more responsible and responsive to the yearnings of the people, just as it has the capacity to strengthen our democracy."

"The fear that it will cause distraction is unnecessary, instead it will bring about accountability and probity in governance." he said.
With more people supporting the removal of the clause and few opposing its recommendation, the coming months will tell if the delegates made the right decision.