By Naomi Sharang/Nefishetu Yakubu
A former Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice in Nasarawa State, Innocent Lagi, has defended the conduct of by-elections by Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in the country.
He said that the cost of conducting the by-elections could not be placed above the constitutional right of citizens to proper representation in a democratic setting.
Lagi, also a former member of the state House of Assembly, stated this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Saturday.
He said that the constitutional requirement for representation at all levels of government must be respected at all times.
Speaking on the forthcoming by-election in Nasarawa North Senatorial District, he argued that citizens could not be left without representation in the National Assembly simply because of financial concerns.
“Why do we look at the funds? We give out money to eat food; we pay lawyers to represent us. If this was a court case and you don’t have a lawyer in one year, you could go to prison,” he said.
According to him, the right to representation at the national level is too important to be weighed against financial considerations.
“We should not under-estimate or put a value that is in excess of our rights. A right to representation at the national level cannot be equated with money,” Lagi stated.
According to him, the law mandates the conduct of by-elections whenever vacancies occur, stressing that every constituency must continuously have representation in the national assembly.
“The law says we should have it now and the law requires that we must consistently have representation in the national assembly at all times,” he added.
Lagi, while dismissing arguments that by-elections amounted to wasteful spending, noted that funds for such exercises were already captured in government budgets.
“The money exists to do these things. There is money for by-elections and it has been budgeted for. The use of the money is to conduct these by-elections, nothing more,” he said.
Drawing comparisons with governance at the national level, the former attorney-general questioned why any part of the country should be denied representation for a prolonged period.
“Can we afford to be without a government for one year in the entire country? If the answer is No, then why should we expect any part of the country to go without governance for that length of time?” he queried.
On the heightened political activities in Nasarawa North senatorial district ahead of the poll, Lagi described the developments as normal in a democratic setting.
“The confusion, the activities and the high emotions are all parts of the democratic process that people are entitled to.
“We must respect that and allow it to take its full course,” he said.
The former lawmaker urged all political parties and stakeholders to actively participate in the by-election process, saying participation was necessary for the growth of democracy in Nigeria.
“When you don’t participate, you cannot be talking about democratic principles or democratic rights. We expect everybody to participate so that we can continuously develop our democratic culture,” Lagi said.
On the adoption of consensus candidates by some political parties, he maintained that such arrangements remain internal party affairs and do not violate democratic principles.
“It does not deprive the population of the right to participate. It simply means their candidate of choice may not be on the ballot because of agreements within the party,” he stated.(NAN) (www.nannews.ng)
NNL/NY/WAS
Edited by ‘Wale Sadeeq
