The Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) has exempted its presidential candidate, Peter Obi, and vice-presidential candidate, Rabiu Kwankwaso, from the party’s recently established anti-defection pledge aimed at discouraging elected officials from quitting the platform after winning elections.
The National Secretary of the party, Ikenna Enekweizu, stated this on Wednesday during an interview on Channels Television’s Politics Today, where he defended the policy against complaints that it breaches constitutional restrictions.
According to Enekweizu, the demand for candidates to sign an oath of fidelity is justified by the party’s constitution and is designed to defend the NDC from the wave of defections that have crippled other political parties in recent years.
“First and foremost, a political party is like any other association, and every member who subscribes to the membership of the party is bound by the provisions of the constitution of the party and decisions taken by the party’s properly constituted authorities. Within NDC, the decision to make people sign that affidavit is provided for in our constitution,” he said.
Enekweizu denied the policy was unconstitutional, citing that members of voluntary associations are legally bound by their organisations’ rules.
Despite the fact that the NDC’s constitution requires all candidates to sign the oath, he stated that Obi and Kwankwaso were excluded from the arrangement due to administrative decisions.
“The constitution says everybody running under the platform of the party has to sign, but the party has taken the administrative decision that those required to sign in this instance do not include the presidential candidate and his vice,” he stated.
Enekweizu noted that the party’s primary concern is with lawmakers elected into the National Assembly and state Houses of Assembly who often defect shortly after securing office.
“Our main focus is not the governor; it’s not the president. It’s the national and state assembly members elected on the platform of our party,” he said.
The NDC recently announced the anti-defection legislation, claiming it was intended to defend the party’s institutional integrity.
The party’s leadership highlighted elected politicians’ desertion from the platforms on which they won elections as a primary reason for the decision.
Enekweizu stated that the NDC was committed to establishing a long-term political institution and would not tolerate leaders who used the party solely to win elections before moving on.
