The death of the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate in Saturday’s governorship election in Kogi State, Prince Abubakar Audu, has created a lacuna which has left stakeholders in a dilemma and may plunge the state into a constitutional crisis.
However, the fact that the election was declared inconclusive by the electoral umpire, Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) implies that what has been done so far is only work-in-process. It might as well be no election at all till the party resolves its candidate’s problem and chooses an equally popular member to represent Audu or his running mate steps in his shoes – and INEC is satisfied with the party’s choice of candidate.
Audu, the governorship flag-bearer of APC in Saturday’s governorship poll in Kogi State died at the age of 68.
Some argue that there is controversy over who steps into the late Audu’s shoes, as the 1999 Constitution is silent on what should be the case in a situation where a governorship candidate dies before being declared winner of the poll. Section 181 (1) of the Constitution, which is supposed to serve as a guide in the event of the death of an elected governor before taking oath of office, did not envisage that a governorship candidate would die in a situation where an election is declared inconclusive.
The section of the Constitution states: “If a person duly elected as governor dies before taking and subscribing to the oath of allegiance and oath of office, or is unable for any reason whatsoever to be sworn in, the person elected with him as deputy governor shall be sworn in as governor and he shall nominate a new deputy governor who shall be appointed by the governor with the approval of a simple majority of the state House of Assembly.”
News of his demise came soon after INEC declared the governorship election held in Kogi on Saturday inconclusive, following the cancellation of the results of the poll in 91 polling units.
Chieftains of APC who had started congratulating themselves, following preliminary results that favoured the party during the collation process, were thrown into shock.
A source at the party’s headquarters in Abuja said chieftains of the party embarked on frantic phone calls immediately news of the death of their governorship candidate broke, with some reaching out to the President who was informed of Audu’s demise immediately he landed in Teheran, Iran, where he is attending a gas summit.
The late Audu was said to have complained of stomach ache on Saturday soon after returning from the polling booth where he had gone to vote in his country home at Ogbonicha, Ofu Local government. He was advised to take a rest.
There are different versions of how he passed on, with some saying he died at 10am on Sunday, while some others said he slumped and died after INEC declared the result of the Kogi governorship election inconclusive.
Personal Assistant to the late former governor, Alhaji Isah Atodo, said the APC candidate died in the early hours of Sunday, even before the governorship poll was declared inconclusive.
Abubakar’s death, according to another family source, was not unconnected with the running stomach he had the previous day, which made him vomit a lot.
He said Audu had complained of a certain food he ate in Lokoja on Friday before embarking on the journey to his country home in Ogbonicha.
The deceased politician was very close to making history when he died suddenly. He would have been the only person in the country with the record of being elected three times.
One of the aides of the APC candidate, Tenimu Nasidi, said that as Muslims, his kinsmen and associates had taken his death in good faith as they strongly believe that God gives and God takes.
“To me, I believe that his time was up; nothing any man could do to stop it,” he said, adding that the former governor will be buried today according to Muslim rights.
Other reports suggest that the late Audu fell sick after casting his vote last Saturday and complained. He was said to have had a heart attack.
His condition was said to have deteriorated immediately after the results of the election were announced as inconclusive by INEC.
“They all sat down watching the results being announced by INEC some of which he already had, then he suddenly reacted when INEC announced the result as inconclusive, a situation which triggered off a heart attack and subsequently led to his death,” another source close to the family said.
Wada declares 7 days of mourning
Following the sudden death of Audu, Kogi State Governor Idris Wada, has declared seven days of mourning.
Wada, who expressed shock at the demise of the former governor, called for calm and prayers for the family of the deceased, saying the state has lost a worthy son.
APC to meet over Audu’s death
The national leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC) will meet Monday over the sudden death of the party’s governorship candidate in the November 21, 2015, Kogi State election, Prince Abubakar Audu.
The party had through its official Twitter handle Sunday posted that: “We regret to announce the death of our Kogi State guber candidate, Prince Abubakar Audu.”
But an insider at the APC national headquarters said last night that the party would officially react to Audu’s death today after it would have met with the family of the deceased Kogi frontline politician.
However, a reliable source said that the members of the National Working Committee (NWC) of the party briefly met Sunday after news filtered in on the social media that Audu had passed away.
INEC declares Kogi governorship result inconclusive
But INEC had earlier declared the governorship election held in Kogi on Saturday inconclusive following the cancellation of the results of the poll in 91 polling units.
Announcing the decision in Lokoja, the Returning Officer for the election, Prof. Emmanuel Kucha, said that the electoral body took the step because the 49,453 registered voters in the affected polling units in 18 local government areas were more than the difference between the votes of the two leading candidates.
He said that the cancellations were due to insecurity, ballot box snatching recorded in Adavi, Ofu, Ajaokuta, Bassa, Ankpa, Dekina, Ibaji, Idah, Okehi, Okene, Omala, Olamaboro, Yagba-West, Lokoja, Kogi, Kabba/Bunu, Igalamela-Odolu and Ijumu local government areas.
Kucha said that a supplementary election to determine the winner between the APC candidate, Alhaji Abubakar Audu and PDP candidate, Governor Idris Wada would be held in due course.
He explained that the decision to declare the election inconclusive was in compliance with the provision of the Electoral Act.
The official results released by INEC read, the APC candidate scored 240,867 votes against PDP’s 199,514 votes.
Kucha, who is the Vice Chancellor of Federal University of Agriculture, Makurdi, Benue, said INEC was expected to conduct the supplementary election in the affected units within one week as provided by the Electoral Act.
He announced that only 511,648 out of 1,379,971 registered voters in the state were accredited to vote in the election.
Kogi supplementary elections holds in December
Pending any unforeseen circumstances, a supplementary election for the Kogi State governorship election will hold in December.
This is in keeping with INEC’s tradition which schedules supplementary polls two weeks after the substantive poll was conducted.
However the electoral commission has said it is too pre-emptive to fix a date for the election until after the report of the last Saturday’s election will be deliberated on by the commission this week.
INEC’s director of Voter Education and Publicity, Oluwole Osaze-Uzzi, said until the report of last Saturday’s election is deliberated upon, it would be difficult to talk of a date for the supplementary poll.
However, the commission would engage in a series of crucial meetings over the date for the supplementary polls, with the Bayelsa State governorship scheduled to hold exactly two weeks after the Kogi poll.
The Bayelsa State governorship election is scheduled for December 5.
However in the era inconclusive elections, supplementary polls have held two weeks after the originally scheduled elections.
On November 16, 2013, INEC declared Anambra State governorship election inconclusive and held a supplementary poll on November 30.
In April 2015, the electoral commission also declared governorship elections in Abia, Taraba and Imo states inconclusive. It however held supplementary polls in those states on April 25.
But Osaze-Uzzi, said: “As far as I am concerned, no date has been fixed yet. As soon as we get the official report of the election from the state, a date will be fixed.
“It is too pre-emptive now to fix a date until we get the report. As we speak, most of our INEC officials are in Kogi State. So when they return with the report tomorrow, we will deliberate on it.”
He, however, assured that the tentative date for the supplementary poll would not affect the governorship election in Bayelsa State scheduled for December 5.
He said: “The commission conducted elections few months ago, in every part of this country. So it won’t be impossible to do.”
Lawyers react
There was a sharp division last night among constitutional lawyers over the fate of the inconclusive governorship election in Kogi State in respect to who steps into the late Audu’s shoes.
Some of them tipped the APC member who came second to Audu in the party’s primary election in August, while some contended that the running mate of the APC candidate, Hon. James Abiodun Faleke, was the right man to become the party’s governorship candidate.
Mr Tayo Oyetibo (SAN) argued that the framers of the 1999 Constitution did not envisage a situation where a leading candidate in an election dies before being declared the winner of an election which was already apparent he was winning.
Oyetibo said last night that since a dead man cannot contest election, the onus lies on the APC to present a candidate that would be fielded during the supplementary poll.
“The time has come for the National Assembly to wake up from its slumber and amend the Constitution to avoid such unexpected occurrences that are capable of plunging the country or a section of the country into unnecessary crisis,” the learned silk said.
Corroborating his position, Lagos lawyer and human rights activist, Mr Femi Falana (SAN), said there was indeed a lacuna as the Constitution was silent on the sudden death of a candidate who is coasting home to victory.
He said, while what is happening in Kogi is not within the contemplation of the 1999 Constitution, INEC must speedily make a pronouncement on the constitutional logjam in Kogi, adding that the National Assembly must amend the Constitution to forestall such future crisis.
Falana added that since the votes belong to the party of the candidate who died, the APC should also prepare to present a credible candidate to fill the vacuum created by Audu’s death.
However, a Professor of law, Chief Awa Kalu (SAN), argued that if Abubakar Audu wins after the supplementary election, his deputy should take over if he is truly dead.
He said, “The Supreme Court has decided it in the case of Atiku Abubakar, when he was chosen by former President Olusegun Obasanjo after he was elected the governor of Adamawa State. When some people went to court, the Supreme Court said his deputy in that election, Mr Boni Haruna, should take over.
“In the case of Abubakar Audu, his deputy will be the beneficiary because the party will have to appropriate the votes he got to his deputy.”
Another lawyer, Mr. Ahmed Raji (SAN), contended that the process would have to begin all over again, since INEC had not declared a winner.
Speaking in a similar vein, a legal practitioner, Ismail Alasa, described the election as an incomplete process since the election was inconclusive.
He said, “The situation we find ourselves is not envisaged by the Electoral Act. As it stands, there is no election and the process will have to start all over again. When he is elected and he is unable to take the oath of office and assume office, his deputy will have to take over, according to section 181 of the 1999 Constitution.
“In this case, the election is inconclusive. It is an incomplete process and it is as if nothing has happened.”
APC can field Hon Faleke as gov candidate – Keyamo
Although human rights activist, Mr Festus Keyamo, described the development as strange and novel constitutional scenario that has never happened in our constitutional history, he however, said the Kogi situation fits more into section 181(1) of the 1999 Constitution.
According to him, Faleke automatically becomes the governorship candidate of the APC. This is because even though the election is inconclusive, votes have been counted and allocated to parties and candidates.
Keyamo also argued that the joint ticket of Audu/Faleke had acquired some votes already.
“James Abiodun Faleke is as much entitled to those votes already counted as much as the late Abubakar Audu. He has a right to cling to those votes going into the supplementary election.
“There is only one problem, though. Who nominates Faleke’s deputy? Unlike section 181(1) of the 1999 Constitution, he cannot approach the House of Assembly of the state to approve a nomination by him of a deputy.
“This is because, in reality, he is not duly elected yet. Therefore, it is only reasonable to conclude that it is APC (Faleke’s political party) that should submit the name of a fresh deputy governorship candidate to INEC for the supplementary election.”
Gov Badaru condoles with Kogi people, APC supporters
Jigawa State governor, Alhaji Muhammad Badaru Abubakar, has condoled with the family of the late Prince Abubakar Audu, the APC governorship candidate in last Saturday’s Kogi State gubernatorial election.
The governor also consoled the entire people of Kogi State, all supporters of APC in the country and the entire nation over the loss of the politician.
In a statement by the special assistant on media to the governor, Malam Bello Zaki, Badaru described the death of Prince Audu, who served twice as a governor of his state, as a great loss not only to the people of Kogi but to the entire nation in general.
The Zamfara State governor prayed that Allah Almighty grant him eternal rest and give his family and the entire Muslim Ummah the fortitude to bear the irreparable loss.
The man, Prince Abubakar Audu
The first civilian governor of Kogi State, Prince Abubakar Audu, was born on October 27, 1947, to the family of his Royal Highness, the late Pa Audu Oyidi, Orego Atta of Igala land and the paramount ruler of Ogbonicha-Alloma in Ofu local government area of Kogi State.
The man who would later define the politics of Kogi State began his education at the then Native Authority (N.A.) Junior Primary School, Aloma, and later N.A. Senior School, Ankpa, from where he proceeded to Dennis Memorial Grammar School, Onitsha. He later transferred to the Jos Commercial College where he obtained both the Ordinary (O) and Advanced levels in the General Certificate of Education (GCE) examinations.
After a stint in the banking sector, his thirst for more education saw him later proceeding to London from 1975 to1978 where he studied banking and personnel management, bagging a professional qualification as a certified secretary, and as a Fellow of the Association of International Accountants of London, as well as fellowship of the Chartered Institute of Industrial Administration of Nigeria.
Audu’s banking career spanned a total of 25 years, which he spent with First Bank, then known as Standard Bank. Here, he served in various capacities at management level until 1991. He also made history as the bank’s first training officer of African descent and also as one of the first black senior management staff of Standard Chartered Bank in London and New York.
In 1991, he was appointed executive director of FSB International Bank Plc.
Audu’s sojourn into public service began in 1986 when he was appointed commissioner for Finance and Economic Planning in the old Benue State. He served in this capacity until 1988 when the cabinet was dissolved. He then returned to Fist Bank of Nigeria Plc as a general manager.
In August 1991, Kogi State was created from parts of the old Benue and Kwara states. This coincided with one of Nigeria’s many critical encounters with democracy, and Audu, being part of those who had advocated for the creation of the state and a notable son of the soil, was invited to contest for governorship. He contested on the platform of the National Republican Convention (NRC) and won the election held in November, 1991. He was subsequently sworn in as the first governor of Kogi State in January 1992.
In 1998, democracy was again re-introduced and Audu, now with the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP), was elected again, recording a resounding victory over his opponents. He was sworn in on May 29, 1999, as the second governor of Kogi State.
Prince Abubakar Audu contested in the 2003 Kogi State gubernatorial election but lost. His loss at the poll has been attributed to election rigging and other forms of manipulation, and 2003 is generally acknowledged in Nigeria’s history as the beginning of a period of fraudulent electoral process carried out by the then PDP-led Federal government.
In 2007, when election bells rang again, Audu went to the polls, and was again defeated by the then incumbent, Ibrahim Idris, in a general election that even the elected president, Alhaji Umaru Yar’Adua, admitted in his inaugural speech as fraught with fraud. Prince Abubakar Audu thereupon went to the Election Tribunal which nullified that election, and ordered fresh elections. Again, Prince Abubakar Audu contested against Ibrahim Idris and, again, he was defeated in another less-than-credible electoral process.
In 2012, he again contested against a newcomer to the scene, Captain Idris Ichalla Wada, and again Audu was defeated. There was still the cry of electoral rigging. The result of the particular election was allegedly announced while collation was still ongoing.
This time around, Prince Abubakar Audu emerged as the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) at the August 28, 2015, Kogi State gubernatorial primary election. Subsequently, he announced James Abiodun Faleke, a legislator, as his running mate.
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