AFAS AFFAIRS: Of delayed election, nullified constitution, unconstitutional bye election, un-inaugurated Sports director (Part 2)

The session has undoubtedly been characterized by turmoil within the faculty’s political sphere, with controversies arising from various sources. The consequences of these controversies are the disruption and disarranging of all spheres of the faculty, and the sports sphere of the faculty is very much affected.

AFAS New Sports Director/Dean’s Cup Saga: What Really Happened

After the final impeachment of the embattled AFAS Sports Director, Alawiye Israel by the Faculty Legislative Council, the Council of Presidents and Secretaries (CPS), the body constitutionally charged with organizing bye-elections in the faculty made the call for aspirants interested in filling the vacant Sports Directo post and after it’s an election, Kolawole Akintomiwa, a 300-level student from the Department of Communication and Language Arts was announced as the new Sports Director.

However, since the announcement of his emergence, the new Sports Director has not been taking any active role in overseeing the sports affairs of the faculty. Sources also informed AFAS Press that the newly elected officer is not being related to by members of the Faculty Executive Council as a member of the Council and “he has not been added to the AFAS Executives Council WhatsApp group.” In addition, the recently held AFAS Dean’s Cup was managed by a Sports Committee whose Chairman is not the newly elected Sports Director. In a bid to unravel what is really going on for Afasites, AFAS Press spoke with actors in the foregoing:

When contacted by AFAS Press, Kolawole Akintomiwa, the newly elected Sports Director said that even though he was elected through the bye-election organized by the CPS, he did not assume office because he wasn’t sworn in. When asked about the steps he has taken concerning the tardiness, he said he didn’t take any because “it is out of my hand”. While reacting to the development, the Chairman of the CPS, Mr Bankole said the swearing-in of the newly elected Sports Director was stopped because information was obtained by the responsible authorities that the Sports Director elect is planning to run for the office in the forthcoming AFAS elections.

“However, it is worth noting that the constitution does not consider this as an impediment to his swearing-in process,” he added.

When quizzed on why the Sports Director elect has not been recognized or sworn in, the AFAS Vice President who was the Acting President at the time of the interview explained that the Staff Adviser suggested that he should not be sworn in because he has the ambition to run for the office in the forthcoming elections.

“Concerning the new sports director, the CPS worked towards his inauguration, but he wasn’t inaugurated. So the staff adviser advised that since he has the ambition to run for Sports Director in the coming election, it’s best he doesn’t get sworn in. And then he runs on the proper ground because the thought was the reviewed constitution will start working from the coming election, which now can’t be anymore. So that was why he wasn’t inaugurated/sworn in. But now that this issue of invalidity of the reviewed constitution is up, I don’t know if he’s still going to be sworn in, but there is nothing he wants to do again. He really tried his best, but the staff advisor advised that he shouldn’t be sworn in. That was what happened.

“So because he’s just an elected member, not yet a proper member of the executive council that was why has not been added (to the WhatsApp group) because there were a lot of issues. That was why. And the issue is whether he is being sworn in or not. So that was exactly what happened,” she said.

When asked how the reviewed constitution halted the inauguration attempt by the CPS, she said “Because the sports director(elect) had an intention of running for AFAS Sports Secretary. So in the new/reviewed constitution that was determined invalid by the Congress, it was written there that anybody who wants to take a new post should resign from the current office, whatever office they are, and run on the same floor with other members that are not in any office. So the staff advisor was like, since that constitution has that provision, then it’s not wise for him to get inaugurated and then resign after one week. The CPS still insisted on his inauguration, but then it didn’t happen by the staff adviser.”

AFAS Press also contacted Rt Hon Olasoji, the Speaker of AFAS FLC in a bid to get the legislative position on the issue. When asked for the reason why the Sports Director elect has not been sworn in, The speaker reiterated that the FLC is not responsible for the swearing-in ceremony and only the body charged with the function can provide detailed information on it.
Responding to a question on the legality of the CPS Bye-election, Hon Olasoji said “That’s what many AFASites want to know. The election is constitutionally void and null by failure to conduct it within two weeks as stipulated by the law. The House being a quasi-judicial council was about to decide after two weeks an alternative but considered giving the body an extension and an ultimatum having known that there was a planned day for the election. The House then gave an ultimatum in line with the scheduled date by the body. Unfortunately, the body postponed the election again by 24 hrs as against the ultimatum and schedule.