Former
President of Igbo think thank, Aka Ikenga, Goddy Uwazurike, has described the
enacted “Not Too Young To-Run” Act assented on Thursday by President
Muhammadu
Buhari “as a mere humorous law.”
Uwazurike
said the constitution of Nigeria clearly states the age qualifications for the
offices of the President, Governors, Senators, and members of the Houses of
Representatives, State Assembly, among others.
Uwazurike,
citing Section 106 (b) of the 1999
Constitution, which states the age of 30 and Section 131(b), which stipulates
that a presidential candidate shall be at least 40 years, said: “A mere Act
cannot amend the constitution. The only remedy is the amendment of the
constitution. As a matter of fact, any law that is inconsistent with the
constitution is null and void to the extent of the inconsistency.
“The
constitution is the Supreme law and all laws, whether existing or new, must
align with it. I am puzzled as to the hysteria when it is only all motion and
no movement.”
Similarly,
another legal practitioner, Daniel Eyyazo, said the law would only be something
to go by if the 1999 Constitution is amended to reflect it.
Eyyazo, who
described the law as an “effort in futility” told the News Agency of Nigeria
(NAN), yesterday in Jos, the Plateau State capital, that the law would remain
null until the constitution is amended to fully accommodate it.
This is just
as a civil society group, Project One Productions, commended Buhari for
assenting to the Act, which was passed last year by the National Assembly.
Its
Coordinator, Bisayo Akinnadeju, said the signing of the Act would address the
age discrimination in contesting for elective offices, while giving young
Nigerians the opportunity to bring their wealth of knowledge to bear in
governance.
Akinnadeju
said the signing of the assent to the Act by Buhari was proof that the
country’s democracy is advancing.
“In a
rapidly changing world, where more than 50 per cent of the population is under
30, but less than two per cent of elected legislators are, this milestone will
ensure active participation of young people in electoral politics,” he
enthused.
She charged
the youth to be more politically active by contesting for elective positions
and urged political parties to give the much-needed support to youths
interested in contesting for political positions.
But Eyyazo
insisted: “If our constitution is not amended, the Not-Too-Young-To-Run law is
null, because it is only the constitution that provides for the ages of various
political offices.
“Until the
constitution is amended, any other law that contradicts Section 1, Sub-section
3 is considered void, because it is inconsistent with the provisions of our
constitution.
“So, if the
constitution is not tampered with to accommodate the new ages of those to
contest political offices, the efforts will still be futile,” he said.
He called on
the National Assembly to amend the constitution to reflect the new law in order
to avoid embarking on a fruitless journey of enacting a law that would be
useless.
He added:
“What the National Assembly ought to have done is to alter the section of the
constitution to reflect the new law. No Act of the National Assembly can
override the provision of the constitution. So, they should do the needful.”
Eyyazo
called on young people intending to contest elections next year not to
celebrate yet, but push for the right thing to be done.
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