 We did tell you earlier on that there's a report reaching us, which indicates that Andubar the candidate of the All Progressive Congress APC for the November 6th Governorship election in Annambara State was indicted some years back for smuggling dollars to the US and pounds to the UK. He was actually a subject of a US investigation into advanced free fraud scheme known as Forward 9 in Nigeria. This was according to the US government. He had previously been sworn in as governor of the state in 2007, but his election was nullified by the Supreme Court on the grounds that Peter Albi, the governor of the state, was yet to finish his fourth tenure, his four-year tenure beg your pardon. But we're going to dig into this gentleman because joining us to discuss this is Kunilawal, his executive director, Electoral College Nigeria. Thank you Kunilawal for joining us. It's very interesting when issues like this crop up and I mean it's also not unusual when people are trying to run for office that dirt is being dug up on them. But in the case of Andubar he seems to have pending cases outside the UK according to this report. It does make me wonder if political parties do like a background check before they allow people to run on their platforms. Should that be the basis of this conversation? You know we're going to look at this thing properly. Let's start with the electoral act and within the electoral act it states that any candidate that has been penned for any situation in a court of law but as funny as our electoral act is it leaves a lacuna on if you've been penned in a foreign country. So Andubar's case will now be argued from the position as if lawyers were given the chance to be argued from a position that he never was penned by Nigerian court or tribunal and that's where they will come from. Now INEC has this within the electoral act which means political parties too must pay attention to it. But I think in the whole big picture or in the scheme of things where the problem actually lies is where we do not draw the line if because looking at Andubar when this actually happened before 2007 and he served sometime preceding 2007 as a senator and while he was serving he already had this case lagging behind and the CCT that's the code of conduct tribunal of course has demanded to remove an officer with such an issue this has never been done in Nigeria this has never happened and I think people are comfortable with it and if you even look at how comfortable with it how so when I mean the people are comfortable with it I'm talking of the representatives of the people that's the legislature who should actually make a move towards stopping all these actions and even preceding his present run for governor I believe the nomination for almost 20 million Naira and the intention to run was 2.5 meaning he has spent 22.5 million the existing present electoral act does not allow anyone running for of course governor exceed the amount of 100 million if I'm correct so he has taken 22.5 million out of his campaign money is anybody looking at what he has spent after that we can't just come from a point where okay UK I said this what of what he's even breaking in Nigeria so the truth is that either the national assembly is comfortable with this the CCT also feels very comfortable because this is the modus operandi of the average politician in Nigeria and that is where the real bono problem comes we don't need to start looking at foreign countries to start to help to tell us what exactly is going on in our country but that seems to be the case we never really pick up issues except it becomes an issue that the either the UN is putting out a report or Amnesty International or Transparency do you understand what I'm coming from we never really follow these things so and that's why I'm saying does this not call to question the entire process of our elections the entire process of internal democracies within political parties just does not call to question i-neck in itself for even allowing people like this to run in the first instance you know what's amazing about the electoral act and this is the most amazing thing it states campaign funds should not exceed to some amount it states a candidate cannot have an issue with the court with law or with forgery and especially fraud it states that an aspirant cannot have those issues do you know what it does is state who persecutes so it's it's for me our electoral act is rigged to tolerate such issues and incumbrances to to kind of leave a level playing field so that the Ali Baba and the forties can run within the system so now that we have the like I said at the beginning when it's close to elections or someone's running for office dirt is being docked up either by the opposition or by people who really want to sanitize the system but then the sensationalism plays out until the elections proper and then everybody goes back to sleep nobody really follows through and just as the conversation we had previously about insecurity and terrorism and funders of terrorism here we are again talking about there not being a wheel of sorts a political wheel to deal with these issues to even see if we can drive it to a conclusion of sorts and now we're getting ready for 2023 there is an electoral act bill that's still on the floor of the national assembly and we're hoping for a miracle of sorts and it seems more like we may not be carried along at the end of the day because we still haven't heard anything the national assembly has come back they've resumed plenary all we've heard is that monies have been approved for mr president to take loans and all of that but we've not really heard about how 2023 is going to play out as it as concerns the electoral act bill so what hopes do we have that we can sanitize the electoral system you're the of the electoral college it's not enough for us to train young people you're doing a great job by the way on how to be great leaders and all of that but what about the system that is not sanitized okay um let's bust a little bubble here okay desires of politics in Nigeria understand one critical thing that I think the rest of us don't understand they understand that the Nigerian people just understand that the entire Nigerian system is weighted on like a buffet so what happens is while mr a is getting it off let's give an example in this case and you but breaking the laws everybody is comfortable because they know one day a kule lawal who run for office and my friends who won contracts and they'll everybody else will be comfortable with it so because we benefit as much as we tend to turn it around we benefit from the corrupt practices that actually exist within the systems because if you look at it the delegates are us the people transferring money or moving money around ours we seem to be very comfortable with it and because we've been comfortable with it we cannot hold the system accountable because we know that to one day affect kule's uncle that would one day become governor or affect kule and my friends who lose out in the national kick so it's a clear buffet so does that not mean that we're not ready to move forward as a country anytime soon we're just paying lip service to it we're just jaw-drawing and we're not ready to act upon it and when I say we I'm not talking about just the government I'm not talking about the legislator I'm not talking about the judiciary I'm talking about we the people what stops what stops there are number of people and the uber has a fraud case what stops there are number of people we're not voting for Andy uber because he has a fraud case and he wins zero votes in a number it to send a message nobody else who attempt having a fraud case and going to the system you can't rely on the political parties but like you said you also pointed to is our brother is his time let him so it seems like you said the national kick scenario we all take a piece of it how do we even begin to change that mindset because it's not enough for us to say go and vote go and re-register get a voters card come out and vote watch your votes get counted there's a lot of backroom work that needs to be done yes I don't want to also hold the national orientation agency accountable but eventually I would have to hold them accountable on this matter this conversation always comes up yes the conversation always comes up and the truth is that national assembly has even sorry the national orientation agency has not put out enough information or less today they've put out two percent of the information telling people go and vote your vote should count why should that be the only thing why not participating in primaries why you're not a delegate why you're not we don't tell people these things we don't even allow people even know something as basic and let me surprise you I can tell you 94 percent of Nigerians do not know that the local government does not have immunity I would say it for free on tv but I know that they don't know that that exists and most people check your constitution that's what occurs so the truth is if we do not even understand the system how then are we going to hold the system accountable who's educating and that's the thing do we wait for the national orientation agency who does not have impressed to do anything or I mean who are not mobilized whether it's it's the truth they're not mobilized until it's close to elections season and then we start seeing those ad materials most the last time you saw an N.O.A. ad material on tv well they were very active during COVID the COVID money was really going around well that's COVID and so I'm saying but then there are social responsibilities that people need to be educated on and we don't see that so I really don't know and I hate to be you know a pessimist but I don't know if we are really ready for change unfortunately that's the sad notes that we have to end this conversation on Kumilawa is of the Electoral College Nigeria thank you very much for speaking with me it's my pleasure all right well thank you all for staying with us we'll take a short break now to hear if Nigerians are interested in knowing the sponsors of terrorism in the country and after that I will say good night very well I would love to know them because of the so many bad things that is happening in Nigeria today we're all living in fear here and there so we need to know them knowing them we expose them so that they may have the fear to avoid doing it or stop doing it entirely honestly no I'm not and I would say I'm not because I like a situation whereby I have a problem and then there's a situation for it so if I'm knowing whoever is considering these people so what next it's not like we've not seen tragedies that you know are bigger than this and then we'll have a situation whereby nothing happens to the person I mean you have these people you know them they are seen they're identified but then nothing happens to them they just go scots free some of them even become I don't know more popular exactly so yeah I take well as a Nigerian I would love to know and in the constitution is legal those who are sponsoring they are also terrorists also so it's good they should tell the Nigerians who they are and persecute them according to the law yes I would like to know but I don't I don't think it's possible for someone like me to know because I'm not in the position to know but we want to say thank you to all of you who've been part of the conversation I hope that you've enjoyed every bit of it but I'm going to leave you with a word of advice and I think it's very important we need to go beyond just asking government for good governance we also have to be good followers you need to learn about your social responsibility as a Nigerian because you also have a responsibility to your country and you have to do right by I'm Mary Annacorn have a good evening