Falana Declares Wike’s FCT Holiday Order Illegal

Human rights lawyer and Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Femi Falana, has described as unlawful the public holiday declared by the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, ahead of the area council elections held on Saturday.

Mr Wike had announced Friday as a work-free day and imposed movement restrictions from 8 p.m. on Friday to 6 p.m. on Saturday. The directive was conveyed in a statement issued by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communications and Social Media, Lere Olayinka.

The elections took place across the six area councils of the Federal Capital Territory including Abuja Municipal Area Council, Bwari, Gwagwalada, Kuje, Abaji, and Kwali.

Reacting to the minister’s action, Mr Falana said the FCT minister does not possess the constitutional authority to declare a public holiday, stressing that such powers reside with the President, state governors, and the Minister of Interior.

“He (Wike) is not involved in the conduct of the election. He has no business talking about a holiday because he has no power to declare one. That was why the holiday was ignored,” Mr Falana said.

“Only the President, the Minister of Interior, and the governors can declare a holiday. No minister has the right to declare a holiday for INEC; you are not involved in the conduct of elections. So, you cannot declare it as if it’s your own election.”

He further maintained that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) operates independently under the Constitution and is not subject to directives from political office holders.

“Contrary to what people are saying, INEC is not bound to take directives from anybody, including the National Assembly and even the President, under the constitution. It has to be made clear that it is an independent body,” he said.

Mr Falana also weighed in on the controversies surrounding the newly amended Electoral Act signed into law by President Bola Tinubu, expressing concern over the decision not to make electronic transmission of results compulsory.

He argued that the development represents a regression in Nigeria’s electoral reforms, noting that even in 2023, electronic transmission was optional.

“We have gone beyond the level they (National Assembly) have returned us to. In 2023, it was whether it was compulsory or optional for INEC to transmit results. Since then, we had started campaigning that the transmission of results should be compulsory,” he said.

“The debate is not and has not been whether we can transmit results or not. INEC promised to do that in 2023, and it apologised for failing to do so on the excuse of a system glitch. That is what we should be addressing, not where the National Assembly has taken us to.”

He added that technological challenges cited in previous elections could be resolved, referencing assurances from the Nigerian Communications Commission that electronic transmission was feasible.

“If you are now saying there were some areas with poor network, that is what we should address. But it’s doable,” he said.