Did Buhari Violate The National Honours Act? Read What The Act Says

President Muhammadu Buhari in a deft move on Wednesday, June 6 conferred the highest award of GCFR on late Chief MKO Abiola as part of recognition for his travails during the June 12, 1993 presidential election.

Abiola was presumed to have won the election which was annulled by the regime of General Ibrahim Babangida.

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Announcing the move, Buhari said, “Accordingly, after due consultations, the Federal government has decided that henceforth, June 12th will be celebrated as Democracy Day. Therefore, Government has decided to award posthumously the highest honour of the land, GCFR, to late Chief MKO Abiola, the presumed winner of the June 12th 1993 cancelled elections. His running mate as Vice President, Ambassador Baba Gana Kingibe, is also to be invested with a GCON. Furthermore, the tireless fighter for human rights and the actualization of the June 12th elections and indeed for Democracy in general, the late Chief Gani Fawehinmi SAN is to be awarded the GCON.

“The investiture will take place on Tuesday June 12th, 2018, a date which in future years will replace May 29th as a National Public Holiday in celebration of Nigeria Democracy Day.”

Moments after the announcement, a former Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Alfa Belgore, who was CJN from 2006-2007, said the national honours cannot be awarded posthumously, much less the GCFR.

“It is not done. The only thing they could do is to name a place after him, but national honours award, no,” Belgore said.

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According to Belgore, chairman of the 2016 national honours committee, he “was not consulted” by the Buhari administration before the decision was taken.

In the face of the controversy the announcement is generating, THE WHISTLER looks at what the National Honours Act says enacted in 1964 but with a commencement date of 1st October, 1963.

The Act is set out in three sections: 1. Power to provide by warrant for award of honours; 2. Offences; and 3. Short title.

Article 1 of the Act specifies the type of awards. (I) There are hereby established two Orders of Dignity which shall be known respectively as the Order of the Federal Republic and the Order of the Niger (and are hereafter in this warrant referred to as “the Orders”).

“(2) Each of the Orders shall consist of four ranks of which (a) the first and highest shall be that of Grand Commander; (b) the second that of Commander; (c) the third that of Officer; and (d) the fourth that of Member of the Order.

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Specifically, Article 2 deals with eligibility for appointment to Orders.

It states: (I) Subject to paragraph (2) of this article, a person shall not be eligible for appointment to any rank of an Order unless he is a citizen of Nigeria.

“(2) A person other than a citizen of Nigeria shall be eligible for appointment as the

honorary holder of any rank of an Order; and appointments made in pursuance of this paragraph shall be disregarded for the purposes of paragraph (3) of the foregoing article.”

The next Article, 3, addresses the Mode of Appointment to Orders, etc. And it says:

“(I) The President SHALL BY NOTICE IN THE FEDERAL GAZETTE signify his intention of appointing a person to a particular rank of an Order.

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“(2) Subject to the next following paragraph of this article, a person shall be appointed

to a particular rank of an Order WHEN HE RECEIVES from the PRESIDENT IN PERSON, at an investiture held for the purpose (a) the insignia appropriate for that rank; and (b) an instrument under the hand of the President and the public seal of the Federation declaring him to be appointed to that rank.”

Anticipating a situation where two above may not be possible, Article (3) states: “If in the case of any person it appears to the President expedient to dispense with the requirements of paragraph (2) of this article, he may direct that that person shall be appointed to the rank in question in such a manner as may be specified in the direction.”

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