Section 101
QualificationA person shall be qualified for election under this Part of this Act if he or she—
(a) is a citizen of Nigeria;
(b) is registered as a voter;
(c) has attained the age of 25 years for Councillor and 30 years for Chairman and Vice Chairman;
(d) is educated up to at least School Certificate level or its equivalent; and (e) is a member of a political party and is sponsored by that party.
This provision outlines the qualifying requirements of an aspirant to the office of the Chairman, Vice Chairman or Councilor of an Area Council of the FCT.
Qualification for election in Area Councils is primarily hinged on the Constitution requirement
for seeking elective office. This includes the requirement of Nigerian citizenship; a minimum
academic qualification of a School Certificate or its equivalent in addition to being a registered
voter and sponsorship by a political party. This underscores the importance of party membership and the
fact that an independent candidate is not qualified for election at this time under Nigerian law.
The minimum age qualification for Councillorship position is 25, while for Chairman and
Vice-Chairman positions it is 30 years of age.
Note: The age qualification for election into an Area Council Councillorship position is the same as that of State House of Assembly. Section 106(b) of the Constitution was amended in 2017 to reduce the age qualification for aspirants to the State House of Assembly from 30 years to 25 years.
The requirement of being a registered voter for Area Council positions is not indicated for other federal or state elective offices.
Section 106(b) of the 1999 Constitution
