Nigerian Governor Exploiting Constitutional Vacuum For 2027 Gains
- Governor Hope Uzodimma faced criticism for entering the 2027 Senate race while serving as Imo State Governor
- Misbau Lateef, a legal expert, highlighted the constitutional loopholes allowing politicians to contest multiple offices simultaneously
- Lateef, in an interview with Legit.ng, called for reforms to prevent politicians from exploiting gaps in election laws for selfish ambitions
Governor Hope Uzodimma of Imo State has been faulted for joining the Imo West Senatorial District race in the 2027 general elections. The governor was recently elected unopposed as the candidate of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in the senatorial election.
However, Uzodimma's entry into the Senate race comes two years and four months after he was inaugurated as the governor of Imo, suggesting he may have to resign if sworn in as a member of the 11th National Assembly, should he win his senatorial election.
Source: Twitter
Nigerian lawyer speaks on Uzodimma's senatorial ambition
However, Barrister Misbau Lateef, a Nigerian lawyer and senior law lecturer based in the United Kingdom, in an interview with Legit.ng, expressed concerns that the governor is exploiting the vacuum in the Nigerian constitution where politicians can hold two elective offices currently without being ready to occupy them and suggested a way out.
His statement reads:
"There is no provision in the 1999 Constitution or the Electoral Act 2026 that bars a sitting governor from contesting for a different political office (such as the Senate) before the expiration of their tenure.
"The key constitutional provisions governing qualifications for election are found in Section 182 (Qualifications and Disqualifications for Governor) and Section 66 (for Senate). Neither section states that holding the office of Governor is a disqualification for the Senate. The mere act of "contesting" is not prohibited.
"If he wins the Senate, he will become a Senator-elect even as a sitting Governor (this is already common in Nigeria), and he does not have to join the inauguration of the Senate in June 2027 (imagine if a senator-elect is sick or hospitalised before inauguration). So, he can be inaugurated after serving his term as Governor, with the consequence of depriving his senatorial constituency of their due representation during the hiatus. However, while the law does not forbid him from contesting, it absolutely forbids him from being sworn in while still serving as Governor."
Why Uzodimma may not resign
The lawyer also expressed pessimism that the governor would resign to join the Senate come June 2027, when the 11th Senate would be inaugurated. He said:
"But could he be planning to resign as Governor and hand over to his deputy in June 2027 just to join the Senate inauguration? I doubt this very strongly. Nigerian politicians are not that selfless or responsible.
"Overall, I see a desperate, insensitive, selfish, and mischievous exploitation of constitutional lacunae. In that case, this experience should provoke a future constitutional amendment to prescribe that no one can contest for a post they cannot validly take or assume concurrently with their extant position.
"In the US, for example, several states have "resign-to-run" laws that require an officeholder to resign their current position before formally becoming a candidate for another office. There are similar laws in India, the UK, and Canada."
Source: Facebook
APC governors denied sacking Uzodimma
Legit.ng earlier reported that the APC governors denied the report that they sacked Hope Uzodimma as the chairman of the Progressive Governors Forum.
Folorunso Aluko, the director general of the forum, made the clarification in a statement on Thursday, May 7, describing the claim as false.
Reports had earlier claimed that Uzodimma was sacked by 20 APC governors, who reportedly elected his counterpart from Enugu as the chairman of the forum.
Source: Legit.ng
