Shadowy Group Claims Electoral Act Not Violated, Set to Present Nomination Forms to Buhari

By Onyebuchi Ezigbo in Abuja

A shadowy group, the Nigeria Consolidation Ambassador Network (NCAN), which purchased presidential nomination forms of the All Progressives Congress for President Muhammadu Buhari, has said that it did not violate any provision of the Electoral Act. The group also said it would soon make a formal presentation of the nomination forms to President Buhari.

The group has been receiving knocks since Wednesday when it bought APC expression of interest and nomination forms for Buhari at the cost N45 million in breach of the Electoral Act.

The Electoral Act 2010 as amended provides in Sec 91(9) that no individual or other entity shall contribute more than N1million to the election expenses of a candidate.  The Act stipulates a fine of N1million or 12 months imprisonment for any candidate, who knowingly violates this provision.

The group on Friday defended its action saying that the Electoral Act did not bar individuals from collectively contributing funds to buy nomination form for an aspirant.
Addressing journalists in Abuja, the National Coordinator of NCAN, Sanusi Musa, said the group took time to study legal provisions and there was no where the Electoral Act mentioned donations to aspirants.
Musa claimed that the extant laws only referred to contributions in support of a party’s candidate in an election, which he said was not the case with what the group did.

Musa told journalists that the group would give Buhari  time to rest up from his trip to China before formally presenting the form to him.

Details later…