Lagos — The realisation that the tenure of the National Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Maurice Iwu, may have expired last year is causing ripples at the National Assembly and the Presidency, THISDAY has learnt.

The development is said to have led the government into weighing the options before it in the light of the revelation.

"Government may either terminate Iwu's appointment or re-nominate him," said one source who added, however, that re-nominating the INEC chairman "is not on the cards."

The newspaper had reported yesterday that Iwu, who was appointed an INEC commissioner in August 2003, may have been retaining his position illegally contrary to the constitutional provision that commissioners can only serve for five years, except they are re-nominated.

"The issue may be raised on the floor of the National Assembly next week because it is a constitutional matter," a Senator told THISDAY last night. "If President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua wants to re-nominate him, then he has to do so, following the rule of law. But from all indications, Iwu's tenure expired last year."

A senior government official informed THISDAY yesterday that the major problem is that Iwu did not return to the Senate for confirmation as chairman when he was appointed in 2005.

"If former President Olusegun Obasanjo had forwarded his name for confirmation and the man had taken a fresh oath of office, his tenure would have started counting from 2005 and not 2003," the official said.

THISDAY also learnt yesterday that senior officials of the Yar'Adua government were in frantic meetings after reading THISDAY's story which was seen as an embarrassment to the rule of law stand of the present administration.

"Contrary to what many may believe, this is not a deliberate inaction by the government," a source said. "It was just an issue of oversight and maybe the confusion caused by the year of his (Iwu's) appointment as chairman."

Attempts to reach the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Chief Mike Aondoakaa, were unsuccessful as calls to his two mobile phones did not go through.

The Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Alhaji Yayale Ahmed, could also not be reached on his mobile phone.

When contacted, Presidential spokesman, Mr. Olusegun Adeniyi, referred to an interview he granted THISDAY two Saturdays ago in which he said all issues relating to the tenure of INEC chairman and the commissioners would be resolved when the electoral reforms are implemented.

A five-year tenure is provided by the constitution for chairmen and members of federal executive bodies named in Section 153 (1) of the constitution. These bodies are INEC and 12 others.

Section 155 (1) (c) states: "A person who is a member of any of the bodies established as aforesaid (in Section 153 (1)) shall, subject to the provisions of this part, remain a member thereof- (c) in the case of a person who is a member otherwise than as ex-officio member or otherwise than by virtue of his having previously held an office, for a period of five years from the date of his appointment".

Also, Section 161(c) states that: "... Any reference to 'member' of a body established by Section 153 of this Constitution shall be construed as including a reference to the chairman of that body."

Basing his argument on the provision which applies to the date a person is appointed into the commission and not the day he becomes the chairman, President of the West African Bar Associ-ation (WABA), Mr. Femi Falana, had been quoted in THISDAY yesterday as saying: "Contrary to his empty grandstanding and the embarrassing ignorance of members of the National Assembly, Iwu's term expired last August by effluxion of time."

Falana explained that the provision of Section 155 quoted above will have to be read alongside Section 161 (c).

So nobody, he said, should claim that the five-year tenure being talked about excludes a chairman of any of the affected bodies or applies separately to a member who later became chairman.

If the President re-nominates Iwu, however, the professor is not expected to have any problems with confirmation by the Senate where he is said to have a very strong foothold.

Some senators led by the chairman of the committee on INEC, Senator Isiaka Adeleke, recently rallied round Iwu by expressing their confidence in him.

A move by some other senators to get the upper chamber of the National Assembly to dissociate itself from the confidence vote was defeated on the floor.

Also, members of the INEC committee in the House of Representatives passed a similar confidence vote on Iwu but could not get the support of their colleagues as the House disowned the vote.