Bayelsa Election: Tension as INEC removes name of APC’s Sylva from final list

Bayelsa Election: Tension as INEC removes name of APC’s Sylva from final list

 

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has released revised lists of candidates for the upcoming governorship elections in Bayelsa and Imo States.

 

In the amended lists, which were published on the commission’s website, the names of Timipre Sylva and his running mate, Joshua Maciver, who were representing the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the Bayelsa election, were notably absent. Instead, the column for the names of the APC candidate and running mate bore the remark “court order.”

 

Rose Oriaran-Anthony, the secretary to the commission, explained in the amended document that INEC’s actions were taken in compliance with court orders pertaining to the candidate lists.

 

She further elaborated that the commission had initially published the final list of candidates for the 2023 Bayelsa State Governorship Election on June 9, adhering to the provisions of Section 32 of the Electoral Act, 2022, and the Timetable and Schedule of Activities for the Election. Subsequently, INEC received a court order regarding the nomination of the APC candidate for the Bayelsa governorship election. In accordance with Section 287 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended), INEC was obliged to enforce court orders related to the nomination of candidates by political parties in the state.

 

The same process was followed for Imo State, where INEC had initially published the final list of candidates for the state’s governorship election on June 9, and a court order later requested the inclusion of the PRP and its candidate in the list of nominated candidates.

 

Timipre Sylva was disqualified from participating in the Bayelsa governorship election by the Federal High Court, Abuja, on October 10. The court ruled that Mr. Sylva, who had previously served as governor of Bayelsa and been sworn in twice, would violate the 1999 constitution as amended if allowed to contest again, as he would exceed the maximum term limit. Additionally, a Federal High Court in Owerri issued an order for INEC to include the name of the PRP governorship candidate in the list of nominated candidates, which had already been published on the INEC website.

 

For the Imo State election, the commission included the names of Uchechukwu Ishiodu as the governorship candidate and Ahumbe Chiazor as the running mate, representing the Peoples Redemption Party (PRP).