The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has resolved the controversy surrounding the tenure of Area Council Chairmen and Councillors of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja, saying the elected officials enjoy a four-year tenure.
The commission who disclosed this on Friday said it has been inundated by political parties, aspirants’ forum and lawyers, regarding the tenure of the Area Council officials who were elected in February 2022.
The election was held two weeks after the amended Electoral Act, 2022, which extended the tenure of Area Councils from three to four years.
INEC Chairman Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, at a meeting with leadership of Inter-Party Advisory Council (IPAC) explained that the elected Chairmen and Councillors were took their oath of allegiance and oath of office on the basis of the new Electoral Act, which he said, provides for a four-year tenure.
To this end, Prof. Yakubu stated that the tenure of the Area Councils executives and legislators expires in June 2026 and not June 2025.
According to him, “tenure is not defined by the date of election but the date of the oath of office, for executive elections, or the date of inauguration for legislative houses.”
Prof. Yakubu argued that “A president/vice president-elect, governor/deputy governor-elect, senator-elect, member-elect, chairman-elect or councillor-elect, cannot exercise the powers of office and draw from the remuneration attached to it until such a person is sworn-in or the legislative house is inaugurated.”
He stated that Section 108(1) of the Electoral Act 2022 under which the current Chairmen and Councillors were sworn-in on June 14, 2022, is clear and unambiguous, pointing out that the section expressly stated that “An Area Council shall stand dissolved at the expiration of 4 years commencing from the date:
(a) when the Chairman took the oath of office; or
(b) when the legislative arm of the Council was inaugurated whichever is earlier.”
The Chairman noted that there are several judicial authorities, including the judgement of the Supreme Court, which held that tenure begins from the date of oath of office and not the date of election, and wondered why law firms that wrote to INEC on behalf of their clients did not refer to these judgements.
He recalled that when the Electoral Act 2022 was signed into law two weeks after the commission had conducted the last Area Council elections, former Chairmen and Councillors claimed that the new Electoral Act extended their tenure from three to four years.
“We reminded them that they took their oath of office under the old law before the coming into force of the new Electoral Act. Therefore, their tenure will expire in June 2022,” Prof. Yakubu stated.
He reassured the IPAC leadership that INEC is aware of its responsibilities under the law, noting that Section 28(1) of the Electoral Act 2022 requires the Commission to release the timetable and schedule of activities 360 days before the date fixed for the election.
“It cannot be released two years ahead of elections,” he said.