It is no longer news that the subject of winning 25% in the federal capital area is currently being argued in the presidential election petition tribunal in Abuja. It should be noted that despite receiving the majority of votes in the polls, President-elect Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu failed to secure 25% of the votes cast in the FCT.
Former Attorney General of the Federation Michael Aondoakaa has spoken out on the matter, offering his own interpretation of the provision.
In an exclusive interview with Arise TV, Aondoakaa refers Nigerians to other portions of the constitution. According to him, in order to gain the appropriate interpretation, one must look at other sections and how they are read. He stated that if we consider the FCT as a state, it must be treated similarly to the Governorship election.
In his words, “If the FCT is considered a state, the issue of winning two-thirds of the vote as specified in the governorship election will arise.” But I don’t think that’s what the constitution means. So much has been said and reiterated about this that I simply called attention to other areas of the constitution that can shed additional light because the interpretation rules provide relevance to other sections of the constitution for clarity. And I suggested you should read the entire set of docs. Section 299 appears to be more consistent with the administrative procedure that provides the president the ability to administer as if he were a governor and the national assembly the power to pass laws for the federal capital as if it were a state assembly.
