Senate To Amend Electoral Act, Restore Statutory Delegates – Akpabio

Senate President Godswill Akpabio has disclosed that statutory delegates may return to political party primaries through an amendment to the 2022 Electoral Act ahead of the 2027 general elections.

Speaking at a meeting with the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) in Abuja, he emphasised that their exclusion was a mistake that must be corrected before the next election cycle.

Addressing the need for the amendment, Akpabio stated, “There were defects in the last Electoral Act that need to be addressed. In the 2023 elections and the 2022 primaries, we inadvertently created what I may call super-delegates. Without any deliberate intention by the parliament, statutory delegates including the president, vice president, governors, deputy governors, members of parliament, and local council chairmen were excluded from the primaries.”

He emphasised that this exclusion significantly reduced the number of participants in candidate selection, thereby making the democratic process less inclusive.

“Democracy is about numbers. When statutory delegates were omitted, it meant that unless one contested as an ad hoc delegate, they had no role in selecting party flag bearers for legislative, governorship, and presidential elections. We need to fix this,” he said.

Akpabio further indicated that the National Assembly would re-examine the powers assigned to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in the 2022 Electoral Act.

“It seemed as if INEC became the final arbiter on candidate selection, rather than the political parties. We must ensure that parties retain the power to choose candidates who best represent their manifestos and have the integrity and track record to deliver democratic dividends to the people,” he added.

Beyond electoral matters, Akpabio also urged the NBA to take proactive measures in upholding professional ethics within the legal profession. He expressed concern over the presence of fraudulent individuals posing as lawyers without proper credentials.

He stated that some prominent figures in the legal field had never been officially called to the bar.

“It is the duty of the NBA to weed out such quacks to protect the integrity of the profession,” Akpabio told the NBA delegation.

In response, NBA President Afam Osigwe (SAN) encouraged the National Assembly to use the ongoing constitutional amendment process to implement justice sector reforms.

Osigwe also shared a personal experience from the early 1990s, recalling how he exposed an impostor at the Igbosere Magistrate Court in Lagos.

He revealed that the individual, whom he knew as a History graduate from the University of Calabar, was falsely practicing as a lawyer.