Princewill described 2023 as a very critical year for the citizens to choose a leader, who will usher in a new dawn, charging them not to be weary despite numerous challenges.
The United Kingdom trained technocrat, in a message, yesterday, in Port Harcourt, described the calls by various groups on the Minister of Transportation, Chibuike Amaechi, to offer himself to contest for the office of president of Nigeria as a welcome development.
Recall that a political pressure group, the Unity House Foundation, had at the weekend in Caliber staged a peaceful march, calling on Amaechi to present himself to succeed President Muhammadu Buhari.
The group noted that Nigerians could not afford to miss a leader like Amaechi at this point of national development, considering his leadership root as a speaker.
On the Federal High Court ruling in Umuahia that struck out Section 84(12) of the newly amended Electoral Act, which President Muhammadu Buhari had written to the National Assembly to delete, Princewill said he was no surprise that the court overruled the National Assembly’s provision that appointees wishing to run for office should resign.
According to Princewill, the amended section contradicts the Constitution as pointed out by the court. He said if the Constitution had taken care of appointees running for office by asking them to resign 30 days to an election, why should the National Assembly assert the same provisions.
He said: “Nigerians all over have rights enshrined under the constitution. Hardened criminals have rights. Why won’t politicians? If you want them to forfeit those rights, just make a constitutional amendment, instead of a bill that contradicts the same constitution that you are sworn to uphold.”
The court, in a judgment delivered by Justice Evelyn Anyadike, held that the section was unconstitutional, invalid, illegal, null, void and of no effect whatsoever and ought to be struck down as it could not stand because it violates provisions of the Constitution.
Recall that President Muhammadu Buhari had, while signing the amended Electoral Act, urged the National Assembly to delete the provision as it violated Constitution and breached the rights of government appointees. The President further wrote a letter to both Chambers of the National Assembly seeking amendment by way of deleting the provision an amendment the Senate rejected in plenary.
