Will Ekiti governorship candidate be disqualified by APC?

It is no longer news that Minister of Solid Minerals, John Kayode Fayemi, emerged winner of the APC Ekiti primary which held last Saturday, May 12, 2018.

Fayemi will square up against Prof. Kolapo Olusola of the PDP on July 14 for the governorship seatin Ekiti.

However, there is the very big matter of Fayemi trampling on his party’s constitution ahead of the Ekiti governorship election.

What the APC law says

Article 31, sub-section III of the APC constitution states that: “any party office holder interested in contesting for an elective office (whether party office or office in a general election) shall resign and leave office 30 days prior to the date of nomination or party primary for the office he or she is seeking to contest”.

Fayemi was still serving as Buhari’s minister of solid minerals while canvassing for votes from party delegates in Ekiti He didn't resign "30 days prior".

Aso Rock sources told Pulse that the minister is on a leave of absence on account of his Ekiti governorship ambition, but nowhere is “leave of absence” stated in the APC rule book as a pre-condition for seeking elective office by persons holding government positions.

The APC law clearly states that Fayemi should have; “resigned and left office 30 days prior to the date of nomination or party primary…”

What happens to Fayemi now? Is he going to be disqualified?

Two APC faithful who spoke to Pulse on condition of anonymity say Fayemi could likely be handed a waiver.

“How could he not have known what the law says?”, One APC chieftain fumed. “I’m afraid he’s put himself in a very dangerous position which his fellow contestants in that primary can use against him. But again, this is an internal party affair. We’ll handle this as a family”, the APC chieftain added.

The other APC chieftain who spoke to Pulse said Fayemi has nothing to worry about.

“Our great party will hand him a waiver. He shouldn’t lose sleep at all”, this other APC chieftain said.

The APC constitution also lists its provisions for a waiver for anyone who violates a section of Article 31

“Subject to the approval of the National Executive Committee (NEC)… a person may be granted a waiver only on condition that:

1. He or she hasn’t been convicted by any court of competent jurisdiction.

2. He or she has applied for waiver in writing to the National Working Committee (NWC).

3. He or she has signed an undertaking to uphold and implement the manifesto of the party in the event of winning the election.

So, Fayemi may well walk away from this unscathed and contest the governorship election with Olusola if his political party grants him a waiver.

However, in the unlikely event that the APC disqualifies Fayemi, Segun Oni who came second in the primary after polling 481 votes, will be handed the APC governorship ticket.

APC spokesperson, Bolaji Abdullahi didn’t answer his phone when called for comments on this story.