*When election riggers face consequences, things will be better – Prof Ibrahim
*Nigerian democracy not designed to hold election – Sowore
*Stakeholders must be courageous to speak truth to power – Olujumoke Anifowoshe
*Stop using education, tax clearance as qualification to contest election – Uche Onyeagocha
By BASHIR ADEFAKA
The Executive Director, Civil Society Legislative and Advocacy Centre (CISLAC), Mallam Auwal Ibrahim Musa a.k.a. Rafsanjani, has expressed dismay that democracy in Nigeria is now under threat due to the misbehaviour of political actors and involvement of members of the judiciary.
Rafsanjani was speaking a “National Seminar on Targeted Electoral Reforms and Enhcanced Judicial Integrity in Post-Election Litigation”, held in Lagos on Thursday.
At the event organised by his organisation, the CISLAC executive director, while giving his welcome remarks, said it was no longer tenable that Nigerians would continue to invest their energy and time in an election only for some people to sit down somewhere and write results for themselves against the will of the people.
To put a stop to this, he said, was the reason for the event for Civil Societies, media and other advocacy stakeholders to put heads together and find out where the problem lies with a view to pressing for action against it.
“We must be interested in seeing where the problem is because, we cannot continue to truncate the decision of the Nigeria people and nothing happens. If it is INEC, the politicians or judiciary, we must find out who is responsible.
“We saw the judgment in Zamfara, Plateau and particularly in Kano where Tribunal judges delivered their judgment via zoom. That happened because they knew what they did to the mandate of the people and reason they were afraid to deliver their ruling physically,” Rafsanjani said.
The DEFENDER’S investigation showed that the Tribunal judges were on ground in Kano eve of the judgement day but had to be flown to Abuja by some political figures within the ruling party where they delivered their judgment via zoom right from the governor’s lodge of a South East state.
The investigation further revealed that it was in the lodge in Abuja all the zoom programme was allegedly put together and there the Kano Tribunal judges delivered their judgment of September 20, 2023 that sacked Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf.
That experience, the CISLAC boss said, is a clear indication “Our judiciary is shaking and electoral process is apparently commercialised”.
From his prepared speech, Auwal Musa spoke in details saying, “We are indeed excited to bring under one roof, these very illustrious sons and daughters of our great country as we collectively strive to make it a better place. Some of you in the room today fought and struggled for the transition of Nigeria from military rule to the current democratic dispensation.
“While our democracy has hitherto been threatened by series of systemic challenges since 1999, we had anticipated to make appreciable progress than we currently have.
“Despite various legal reforms preceding the 2023 general and off-cycle elections, the conduct and outcomes of the elections have questioned the direction of Nigeria’s democracy. It is like going ten steps backward for every one step taken forward.
“We are not unaware of the undemocratic actions of the political class who are bent on capturing power at all cost for their personal aggrandizement and at the detriment of the collective good remains a growing challenge.
“These unpatriotic political group appears with the determination to sabotage the integrity and backpedal progress in our legal and institutional reforms targeted at electoral system and process, as well as any other thing that stands on their way. This has left devastating effects on citizens’ trust in Electoral Body and the judiciary.
“The growing commercialisation of electoral process has deprived many decent Nigerians the opportunity to compete favourably in primary elections across political parties. Money politics constitutes a threat to credible and inclusive electoral system in the country. Political financing has become a profitable investment in the country.
“Despite the limits to campaign donation and finance as stipulated by the Electoral Act, in 2023 general and off-cycle elections, there was no control in political spending, as whopping sums were expended on party primaries, electoral campaigns, vote-buying and vote-trading that consequently defeated the essence of electoral integrity.
“Electoral violence is one problem that has been identified as a stumbling block to free, fair and credible elections in Nigeria. It is no more news that many politicians resort to illicit electoral strategies and make use of militant youth wings, militias or the state security forces to either win the election or strengthen their post-election bargaining position. Politics at all levels is currently marred by violence, persecution and intimidation and exclusion of women from active participation in electoral politics.
“The emerging judicial corruption through the post-election litigation like tribunal activities and outcomes has called for adequate reform in our judicial system to make it more independent and efficient in the delivery of electoral justice through which the citizens’ choices prevail. Many Nigerians strongly believed that judiciary suffers from credibility as allegations of bribery activities to truncate justice and compromise electoral outcomes are playing out.
“We must recall the alleged attempts to truncate citizens’ electoral choices through the tribunal judgments in Kano, Kaduna, Plateau and Zamfara states which highlight a disastrous channel Nigeria’s democracy trends in recent times. The judiciary through tribunal judgments has reportedly employed the technicalities in upturning electoral victories, which in most occasions, rigs out the choices of the electorate.
“These are very disturbing trends that must be brought to an end in order not to make the role of the electorates irrelevant. Again, the case of Kano election tribunal is clear example of a deliberate effort still people’s mandate through connivance of both INEC and sponsored judiciary injustice. The conflicting double standard court judgement papers showed the desperation to undermine Kano election victory.
“Equally the recent elections in Kogi state, where original result sheets were reportedly filled in favour of the incumbent political party and in Imo state where the incumbent polled over 80% of total vote cast have sent shivers across the minds of Nigerians, signaling the dangerous extent of political compromise in Nigeria.
“As concerned citizens, it is imperative on everyone desiring the reflection of true democracy in our practice to be apprehensive of the current situation and seek channels for improvement.
It is in light of this that CISLAC is championing this critical seminar bringing together highly valuable resources to speak on topics reflecting areas of challenges in our democratic journey and desire to free fair and credible elections to enable us to have patriotic,transparent and accountable leaders that will work and ensure good governance in Nigeria not political merchants.
“We have been able to get committed Nigeria today ,to share thoughts and reflect on critical next steps to free our democracy from the strangulation of the political class.
“For us on the side of Civil Society, highlights of discussion today will be useful for advocacy as we seek reforms capable of entrenching electoral and judicial integrity in Nigeria. We are fully confident that reflections shared today can be compiled into a compendium of thoughts by vastly experienced Nigerians on electoral reforms and enhanced judicial integrity.”
Pro-democracy advocate and former Presidential Candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC), Mr. Omoyele Sowore, made his intervention known from the angle by which he said the Nigerian political situation is beyond mere reforms but requiring that every wisher for truly better Nigeria must be ready for change.
“Political science of Nigerian professors is outdated” noting it was reason professors present talked the way they talked. He however noted that there is no place in the law that says professors must be in charge of the electoral system.
“These sane professors you are seeing, some of them are the ones who expelled us from the universities. They would sit down and expel the best students. Yes! They expelled Sowore, Ogbara, and others who are also here seated. But today, the world have accepted us,” he said.
According to Sowore, “Judges are usually not seen but heard. But because we have an Owambe judiciary system, you now have the situation we face”, he said adding that judiciary is the reason for problem Nigerian democracy has.
“That is why they can face one of their customers and say “when you became governor, were we not the ones who rigged for you?” That is why why some of them have no respect before judges.
“The Nigerian situation us beyond reforms. This is an unreformable system. The nation’s democracy is not designed to hold election,” Sowore said.
A Senior Fellow, Centre for Democracy and Development, Professor Jibrin Ibrahim, who spoke on “Reforming Nigeria’s Electoral System for Mandate Protection: Opportunities, Challenges and the Way Forward”, said when election riggers face consequences, things will be better.
Professor Ibrahim seized the event to hit back at the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CNJ), Olukayode Ariwoola, for regarding critics of his compromised judiciary as mob.
“You cannot insult us for complaining against your judiciary’s misdeed. I am astonished that we complicate and mess up something so simple”, he said.
He noted that even in Niger Republic there is no post-election litigation “because votes are cast, they are counted and winners are announced and people move on”
Professor Jibrin Ibrahim said the only time election was compromises in Republic of Niger was when a military leader, who had made a law against a military person contesting election, eventually changed his mind and contested.
“After he got security report that he had lost the election, he ordered that the votes be taken to the army Barracks and there the votes were recounted. Then he won in landslide. What happened the next day? His own ADC took a machine gun and blasted his head,” he narrated saying that was to tell all political leaders that there are consequences for every action.
He also spoke to the bragging by one Hon gandi who said people can say what they like saying “but when we get to the Supreme Court we will show who knows who in the apex court,” which the professor shouted down as “a threat”.
A lawyer and daughter of late Chief Michael Adekunle Ajasin, former Governor of Old Ondo State, Mrs Olajumoke Anifowose, also made her submission with a call on stakeholders to be on a path of courage to speak truth to power as, according to her, “Not being able to attain political height without going through a godfather makes Nigerian democratic experience very difficult”.
In his intervention, Uche Onyeagocha, a former Federal Lawmaker, said all the criteria of educational qualification, tax clearance certificate as means to contesting election in Nigeria should be stopped.
Details later…
