As the race for the 2023 general elections formally began last week, the need for scrutiny of candidates jostling for various positions has become more important for political parties and gladiators.
At this stage of the electoral process, the least you would expect from a candidate or party is to be found on the wrong side of the law – the Electoral Act and Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) guidelines. But in Bauchi State, the All-Progressives Congress (APC) appears to be walking a tight rope and undermining itself wittingly or inadvertently, going by the allegation of faulty documentation of its candidate, Air Marshal Sadique Abubakar Baba (rtd).
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Again, the last person you would expect to run foul of the law is a top notch, well-decorated retired general of the Nigerian Airforce, whose glorious career was crowned with the highest honour in his profession as the Air Marshal; having also served as the Chief of Air Staff from July 12, 2015 to January 26, 2021 before veering into the murky waters of politics. He got elected as the candidate of the ruling party for next year’s election in May this year.
Therefore, when information filtered in that the accomplished Air Marshal’s documents filed to INEC in what is called form EC-9 were either not adequate or perceived to have been doctored, the issue got tongues wagging about his sincerity of purpose and how a man of such a stature could make such a mistake, to have left out vital information in such an important form. Or was it deliberate? Form EC-9 is an INEC document to be filled by those wishing to stand for any elective office; it contains personal particulars such as age, nationality, sex, address, educational qualification etc.
As simple as providing this basic credential is, it could be a banana peel for anyone aspiring for office, if wrongly done. And since the opposition, the media and CSOs are always out searching for loopholes in their claims to sanitise the electoral process, it is not a surprise this became Sadique Baba’s albatross, as revealed in a Premium Times publication recently. The publication in a nutshell not just drew attention to Air Marshal Sadique Baba’s credentials, but questioned their validity including his nationality.
In this era of deep politics, any serious candidate desirous of winning clean would have to come to equity with clean hands; otherwise the result could be disastrous.
Quoting a Civil Society Organisation (CSO) named Accountability and Democratic Project (ADEP), the Premium Times report said the group called on INEC to disqualify Sadique Baba for “withholding vital information in the document he supplied to the commission.”
Coming under further scrutiny, the retired Air Marshal was accused of not providing information about his citizenship of Nigeria. He has been accused of being a Cameroonian (laughable you may say but politicians need any straw anyway), and for not providing all supporting documents about his date of birth and academic qualifications.
In that petition to INEC signed by ADEP Executive Director, Ahmad Muhammad, the group demanded for more transparency and accountability by those seeking public office and as provided by the commission, in a petition to the same commission.
“A cursory look at the form shows the candidate claimed that he was born in Azare. He also claimed to have attended St Paul’s Primary School and finished in 1973 and graduated from GSS Bauchi in 1978. Curiously, however, the candidate did not annex documents to prove all these claims that are vital to his overall credentials”.
The CSO also said the deliberate omission of the information in the form keeps it “guessing if the APC candidate was not hiding something.”
In addition to the publication of names and addresses, Section 31(3) of the Electoral Act requires “INEC to publish particulars of a nominated candidate in the constituency where he/she intends to contest the election…”. One element of the requirement is the “publication of personal particulars of candidates which should be ‘within 7 days of receipt of candidates’ list’. This has since elapsed, thus validating ADEP’s petition to INEC. Considering his pedigree, it should be a given that Sadique Baba should have his documents intact, genuine and legitimate. The question now is, if he had these ‘documents’ and they are genuine, why did he not make it public? Conversely, not making it public raises questions and concerns.
While it was easy for the Bauchi APC to waive the enquiry by the press aside, the larger implication is that AM Sadique Baba’s (rtd) candidacy can be challenged on grounds of the Electoral Act which says “that the person whose election is questioned, had submitted to INEC an affidavit containing false information of a fundamental nature in aid of his qualification for the election”. I’m afraid, on this basis; Sadique Baba’s candidacy can be a subject of litigation in a competent court or tribunal if not now, possibly in future, if he secures a victory in the March governorship election. This will not be a good development for both the candidate and the party; therefore, the party should make hay now, while the sun still shines.
By Zainab Suleiman Okino who is an online publisher and a syndicated columnist. She chairs the Editorial Board of Blueprint. She can be reached thus: [email protected]
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