2019: INEC raises alarm, says parties nominate underage for presidential election

2019: INEC raises alarm, says parties nominate underage for presidential election

- The INEC chairman, Mahmood Yakubu, has announced that the commission will disqualify presidential candidates of political parties that do not abide by the electoral act

- Yakubu said the commission has successfully implemented seven out of the 14 activities strictly on the processes of nomination of candidates and others

- He maintained that INEC will never tolerate any breach of the strict timelines provided for the elections

Mahmood Yakubu, chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Thursday, November 29, accused some political parties of submitting underage for the presidential election.

Yakubu made this known at a capacity building for reporter in Abuja revealed that some parties were discovered to have nominated names of candidates below the mandatory age of thirty-five years for presidential and vice presidential candidates, The Nation reports.

He said: ”A few parties have nominated candidates below the mandatory age of thirty-five (35) years for as presidential and vice presidential candidates.

''We have drawn the attention of the parties concerned to the breach of the constitutional requirement ahead of the publication of the full list of presidential and vice presidential candidates for the 2019 general elections.”

“So far, INEC has successfully implemented seven out of the 14 activities strictly on schedule, including the conduct of party primaries for all elections and the processes of nomination of candidates.

“We did not, and will never, tolerate any breach of the strict timelines provided for in the timetable for the elections.

“At the end of the period for the substitution and withdrawal of candidates for the presidential election, a total of 73 political parties have now filed their nominations.

“Even so, a few parties have nominated candidates below the mandatory age of 35 years for as presidential and vice presidential candidates.

“We have drawn the attention of the parties concerned to the breach of the constitutional requirement ahead of the publication of the full list of presidential and vice presidential candidates for the 2019 general elections.

“For National Assembly elections, a total of 1,848 candidates (1,615 male and 233 female) are vying for 109 Senatorial seats while 4,635 candidates (4,066 male and 569 female) are competing for the 360 seats in the House of Representatives.

“Similarly, the full list of candidates and their political parties will be published for public information in line with the Commission’s timetable and schedule of activities.

“As for state elections, a total of 1,068 candidates, 980 male and 88 female, are contesting for 29 Governorship positions with 805 male and 263 female deputy governorship candidates.

“The commission is working on the list of candidates nominated by political parties for the 991 State Assembly constituencies as well as the 68 Area Council Chairmen and Councillors for the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

“The full details will also be published for public information in line with our timetable and schedule of activities. Unfortunately, we have also witnessed some of the most acrimonious party primaries in our recent history.

“Internal party democracy is still a source of concern to our electoral progress. So far, the Commission has been joined in 396 pending actions in various courts across the country arising from the conduct of party primaries and nomination of candidates by political parties.

“We have similarly received 302 requests for Certified True Copies (CTC) of documents, mainly our monitoring reports of party primaries and copies of personal particulars of candidates.

“These requests are obviously a prelude to more court actions. In addition, we have also received 52 petitions and protests from aggrieved party aspirants. The implication of these challenges is that as we prepare for the General Elections, we are also going to grapple with pre-election litigations.

“Parties that fail to respect the democratic process in selecting candidates during primary elections lose the moral right to complain about secondary elections. I wish to reassure the nation that we shall continue to maintain our neutrality as the umpire, registrar and regulator of political parties.

Chairman of the committee and former military head of state, General Abdulsalam Abubakar, said members were on a fact-finding mission on INEC’s preparedness to conduct the 2019 elections.

He said: “Tomorrow (Thursday), we are going to meet all the chairmen and secretaries of registered political parties.

“The aim of the meeting is to reach an understanding where we will meet and then at a later day, sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on how to play politics without bitterness and for political parties to accept the result once INEC declares the results.”