The Fact and the Law: How Shettima’s Nomination As Running Mate Violated Electoral Act

THE FACTS

1. Kashim Shettima was nominated by the APC to INEC for the election into the Borno Central Senatorial District of the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria on the 17^th of June, 2022.

2. Kashim Shettima replaced one Ibrahim Kabir Masari, who was hitherto the Vice-Presidential candidate of the APC for the 2023 Presidential election. The Notice of Withdrawal reveals that Kashim Shettima appended his signature and affixed his passport photograph to the Notice of Withdrawal of Candidate as the new Vice-Presidential candidate of the APC. The Notice of Withdrawal dated 14^th day of July, 2022 was submitted to INEC by APC on the 14^th day of July, 2022 at 6:33pm. The acknowledgment copy of the Notice of Withdrawal of Ibrahim Kabir Masari and his replacement by Kashim Shettima showing that INEC received it on the 14^th day of July, 2022 at 6:33pm.

3. Having secured the Vice-Presidential ticket of the APC, Kashim Shettima decided to withdraw from the Borno Central Senatorial District election. Kashim Shettima appended his signature and affixed his passport photograph to the Notice of Withdrawal as the withdrawn candidate of the APC for the Borno Central Senatorial District Election. APC submitted the said Notice of Withdrawal to INEC on the 15^th day of July, 2022 at 05:13PM GMT+1. The acknowledgment copy of the Notice of Withdrawal of Kashim Shettima and his replacement showing that INEC received it on the 15^th of July, 2022 at 05:13pm.

THE LAW

4. Section 35 of the Electoral Act, 2022 provides that “where a candidate knowingly allows himself to be nominated by more than one political party or in more than one constituency, his nomination shall be void.”

5. Section 142(1) of the Constitution provides that:

“In any election to which the foregoing provisions of this Part of this Chapter relate, a candidate for an election to the office of President shall not be deemed to be validly nominated unless he nominates another candidate as his associate from the same political party for his running for the office of President, who is to occupy the office of Vice-President and that candidate shall be deemed to have been duly elected to the office of Vice-president if the candidate for an election to the office of President who nominated him as such associate is duly elected as President in accordance with the provisions aforesaid”.

6. Section 142(1) of the Constitution makes the nomination of a President inchoate and therefore invalid without a running mate who shall be called a Vice Presidential candidate.

7. It is crystal clear that the Kashim Shettima had double nomination as at the 14^th day of July, 2022 in violation of Section 35 of the Electoral Act, 2022 which provides that “where a candidate knowingly allows himself to be nominated by more than one political party or in more than one constituency, his nomination shall be void.”

8. It is crystal clear that the Kashim Shettima had double nomination as at the 14^th day of July, 2022 in violation of Section 35 of the Electoral Act, 2022 thereby rendering his nomination as the Vice- Presidential candidate of the APC void.

9. It is a notorious fact that a Vice-presidential candidate does not emerge from a primary election conducted by a political party. This finds expression in Section 142 of the Constitution, By Section 142 of the Constitution, it is the Presidential candidate that appoints his running mate from his political party and the party forwards same to INEC.

10. The case of the PDP is not about the internal affair of the APC but the failure of INEC to enforce the provisions of Section 35 of the Electoral Act.

11. The nomination of candidates is complete when INEC receives the nomination forms of candidates from political parties and once nomination is complete, any grievance thereof is no longer an internal affair of the political party. A post-nomination grievance cannot be said to be an internal affair of a political party.

PDP is not challenging the process by which Kashim Shettima emerged as the Vice-presidential candidate of the APC. The choice and emergence of Kashim Shettima is an internal affair of the APC.