Section 84(12): Ondo and Kwara direct appointees seeking to contest to resign

Rotimi Akeredolu, governor of Ondo, has directed political appointees and public office holders who are looking to contest in the 2023 elections to resign by Thursday, April 14.

The directive was contained in a memo dated April 11, 2022 and signed by Catherine Odu, secretary to the state government.

According to the memo, the decision was taken based on the provision of section 84(12) of the Electoral Act 2022.

“As you are aware, the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, His Excellency, Muhammadu Buhari has signed the amended Electoral Bill into Law and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has released guidelines on the conduct of the impending general election, thereby signaling the commencement of intense political activities both at the Federal and State levels,” the document reads.

Also, the Kwara State Governor, AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, has directed political appointees seeking elective positions in 2023 to tender their resignation letters not later than Friday, April 15, 2022.

This was contained in a statement signed by the Secretary to the State Government, Professor Mamman Jibril, on Tuesday, April 12, 2022.

According to the statement, Abdulrazaq said, while quoting the recent Electoral Act 2022 signed by the President, the Act provides that political appointees aspiring to contest elections must resign their positions before the conduct of political party primaries.

The statement also stated that “all resignation letters are to be submitted to the office of the Secretary to the Kwara State Government not later than 15th April, 2022.”

According to Section 84(12) of the new electoral act, no political appointee at any level will be a voting delegate or be voted for at the convention or congress of any political party for the purpose of the nomination of candidates for any election.