Table of Contents
Section 156 (1)
No person shall be qualified for appointment as a member of any of the bodies aforesaid if –
(This section means that a person is disqualified for appointment and should not be appointed as a member of the federal councils and commissions listed in Section 153 of the Constitution (the bodies) if;)
Section 156 (1)(a)
he is not qualified or if he is disqualified for election as a member of the House of Representatives;
(S/he is not qualified to be elected as a member of the House of Representative or such person has been disqualified for election to the House of Representative.)
Section 156 (1)(b)
within the preceding ten years, he has been removed as a member of any of the bodies or as the holder of any other office on the ground of misconduct.
(Such person has been removed from any public office due to misconduct within a 10 year period before the appointment.)
Section 156 (2)
any person employed in the public service of the Federation shall not be disqualified for appointment as
Chairman or member of any of such bodies:
(This section means that a person can still be appointed as a member of the bodies even though he or she is still employed in the public service.)
Provided that where such person has been duly appointed he shall, on his appointment, be deemed to have resign his former office as from the date of the appointment.
(However, where such person has been appointed, he or she will be deemed to have resigned from the former public office as of the date he or she was appointed. Thus, a person cannot hold a public position and still be a member of the bodies.)
Section 156 (3)
No person shall be qualified for appointment to any of the bodies aforesaid if, having previously been
appointed as a member otherwise than as an ex officio member of that body, he has been re-appointed for a further term as a member of the same body.
(This section means that once a person has been appointed and has served his or her term, he or she cannot be reappointed for another term. However, if such person was serving as an ex-officio member, then he or she can be reappointed for another term. Note that an ex officio member means a person who is a member by reason of his or her position or title.)
Section 157 (1)
Subject to the provisions of subsection (3) of this section, a person holding any of the offices to which
this section applies may only be removed from that office by the President acting on an address supported by two-thirds majority of the Senate praying that he be so removed for inability to discharge the functions of the office (whether arising from infirmity of mind or body or any other cause) or for misconduct.
(This section means that members of the bodies mention in sub-section 2 [except the members of the National Population Commission] can only be removed according to the following steps;
1. A member should either be unable to perform the functions of the office for any reason including disease of mind or body or be be involved in misconduct.
2. Members of the Senate will pass a motion that such person be removed based on the above reasons.
3. Over 66% of the Senate must have voted that such member be removed due to the above reasons and render an address to the President
4. The President of Nigeria will act on the Senate’s address and remove such a person.)
Section 157 (2)
This section applies to the offices of the Chairman and members of the Code of Conduct Bureau, the Federal Civil Service Commission, the Independent National Electoral Commission, the National Judicial Council, the Federal Judicial Service Commission, the Federal Character Commission, the Nigeria Police Council, the National Population Commission, the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission and the Police Service Commission.
(The section lists the relevant public offices which will follow the procedures listed in 157(1))
Section 157 (3)
All members of the National Population Commission shall cease to be members if the President declares a National Census Report as unreliable and the report is rejected in accordance with section 213 of this
Constitution.
(If the President of Nigeria declares that a National Census is unreliable, or the report is rejected due to it being inaccurate or perverse, then members of the NPC shall cease to be members.)
