Dr Daniel Ekpenyong has declared that the inauguration of the Diaspora Committee By Peter Obi's Labour Party Is Illegal, Risky, and Contravenes the Extant Provisions Enshrined in the Nigerian Constitution and the Electoral Law.
Last week, the Labour Party constituted a Diaspora Committee to solicit or mobilise funds from eager Nigerians living abroad as reported by the Nigerian press - to support what they call the Peter Obi revolution.
Ekpenyoong said it was therefore pertinent to call Mr Peter Obi's attention to an illegal action embarked upon by his political party, the Labour Party in Nigeria. He warned Mr Peter Obi and the Labour Party should be made aware that the reported initiative if acted upon will violate some extant provisions in the 1999 Nigerian constitution (as amended).
Nigeria’s constitution also forbids possession of funds by any candidate or political party from abroad. “Section 225 (2) (3) (4) (a) (b) & (5) of the Constitution provides that: Every political party shall submit to the Independent National Electoral Commission a detailed annual statement and analysis of its sources of funds and other assets together with a similar statement of its expenditure in such form as the Commission may require.
(3) No political party shall –
(a) hold or possess any funds or other assets outside Nigeria; or
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(b) be entitled to retain any funds or assets remitted or sent to it from outside Nigeria.
(4) Any funds or other assets remitted or sent to a political party from outside Nigeria shall be paid over or transferred to the Commission within twenty-one days of its receipt with such information as the Commission may require.
In the same vein, the Nigerian Electoral Law forbids political parties from raising funds from abroad to use to finance their electioneering campaigns or elections.
Section 85 of the Electoral Act is explicit. In particular, the purported action of the Labour Party if implemented contravenes Section 85 (a) (b) of the Act.
In effect, Labour Party runs the risk of a money laundering or terrorism financing investigation in Nigeria and abroad, as a result of the illegality involved in the reported action.
Furthermore, Labour Party stands the risk of being disqualified if the political party goes ahead with its intended action.
