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Lawyer Seeks Review Of Constitutional Provision Prohibiting Youths From Contesting Elections

A lagos based lawyer, Chukwunonso Daniel Ogbe, has filed a Fundamental  Rights Enforcement suit before the Federal High Court, Lagos to challenge the constitutional provisions … Continue reading Lawyer Seeks Review Of Constitutional Provision Prohibiting Youths From Contesting Elections


1999 ConstitutionA lagos based lawyer, Chukwunonso Daniel Ogbe, has filed a Fundamental  Rights Enforcement suit before the Federal High Court, Lagos to challenge the constitutional provisions which bars Nigerian youths within the age bracket of 18 and 29 years from contesting elections in the country.

The lawyer is specifically challenging the combined provision of Sections 65 (1) (a) and (b), Section 106 (b),  Section 131 (b), Section 177 (b) and 117 (2) of the Constitution, which disqualifies Nigerian youths within the said age bracket from contesting elections into State Houses of Assembly, House of Representatives, the Senate, Governorship and Presidential seats.

The suit was brought pursuant to the provisions of Fundamental Rights Enforcement Procedure Rules, 2009; Sections 12 (1) and 42 (1) (a) (b) of the Constitution and Article 1 (2) of the African Youth Charter, 2006.

The applicant, who claimed to have filed the suit on behalf of Nigerian youths, listed as defendants the Attorney General of the Federation, Bello Adoke (SAN), the National Assembly, comprising House of Representatives and the Senate; the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and its chairman, Professor Attahiru Jega.

In the suit, Ogbe wants a declaration of the court that Sections 65 (1) (a) and (b); 106 (b); 131 (b) and 177 (b) of the Constitution were in conflict with Section 42 (1) of the Constitution, which he argued, had higher flavour and strength than the former.

He is also seeking an order directing the National Assembly to amend the Constitution, in order to domesticate the provisions of the African Youth Charter.

He also wants the court to declare that Nigerian youths, who have attained the age of 18 years, being the age of maturity, are entitled as of right to stand for election into political offices in Nigeria.

The applicant, who said he had planned to contest election into Enugu South Rural Constituency seat of Enugu State House of Assembly, equally urged the court to restrain INEC from  disqualifying him from vying for the election on the account of age come 2015, and by extension, any other Nigerian youth within the age bracket of 18 and 29 years.

Finally, the applicant wants the court to direct the Federal Government and the National Assembly to offset the cost of filing the suit, which he estimated at N20 million.

According to the grounds upon which the suit was filed, the applicant recalls that the Nigerian Government under the leadership of General Abdulsalami Abubakar gave Nigerians a Constitution on May 29, 1999, but that the said Constitution could never be deemed to be the people’s Constitution, as it never evolved through the normal process.

He lamented that the Constitution provides that Nigerians who have attained age of 18 are adults, yet the same Constitution bars adult who fall within the age bracket of 18 and 29 from vying for elective positions in Nigeria, and that the Constitution also recognized that no one should be made to suffer discrimination based on political opinion.

He added that Nigeria signed and ratified the African Youth Charter, which is an international treaty meant for the empowerment of Nigerian youths, but the government has failed to embark on steps needed to bring into force the provisions of the Charter, including amendment of the Constitution to allow youths to vie for political offices.

The suit is yet to be assigned to a judge and no date has been fixed for hearing.