About eight South-East based Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) have called for vigilance by stakeholders as the 2023 Imo State Governorship Election Tribunal prepares to deliver its judgement.
Governor Hope Uzodinma was returned by the Independent National Ellectoral Commission (INEC), a declaration that was vigorously disputed by Senators Athan Nneji Achonu and Sam Anyanwu, candidates of the Labour Party (LP) and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) respectively.
The CSOs urged the judiciary to use the forthcoming judgement to salvage its battered image.
In a joint Statement in Owerri, the CSOs urged the tribunal members to remain steadfast and loyal to the constitution and the Electoral Act, stressing that their actions or inactions would again put the nation’s judiciary under global scrutiny and probably, needless opprobrium.
“For the 2023 Imo State gubernatorial elections, all eyes are once again on the Judiciary. What judgment will they deliver? Will it be a judgment that will reflect the wishes of the people or the wishes of the politicians?
“Will it be a judgment that will reinstate electoral law, election guideline and the constitution as supreme in elections or the affirmation of only the interpretations of tribunal judges?” the CSOs asked.
They decried the excruciating economic hardship faced by Nigerians under the President Bola Tinubu’s administration, saying they are of the firm belief that the outcome of the Imo State Election Tribunal judgment would either provide succour or still worsen the agony of Imolites and South-East in general.
The CSOs cautioned against the use of technicalities to undermine the glaring injustice served on Ndi Imo by those they dubbed “compromised election officials” during the 2023 governorship poll.
“All over the world, election cases are easier to determine because the election laws are very clear, but in Nigeria, even when infractions are very glaring, some tribunals tend to rely on technicalities and look the other way.
“In fact, commentators have concluded that it is the judiciary that now vote in representatives in place of the citizens who own the sole right of determining who represents them.
“Nigeria and Nigerians are bleeding to the point of death, the only succour they need now is justice whose colors lie in the determination of who actually won the election and whether it was free, fair and credible. Nothing should be added or removed,” they insisted.
“Time has come to hold judges accountable for every judgment they pronounce.
“This is because in 2020, a Justice of the Supreme Court warned the apex court that any judgment they deliver, which is considered a miscarriage of justice, will hunt electoral jurisprudence for a long time”.
Led by the South-East Social Accountability Network and Democracy and Development Coalition, the CSOs warned that electoral malfeasance and compromised judgement can fuel social unrest and add to the misery faced by citizens.
The group also cautioned that the a betrayal of public confidence, erosion of the rule of law, etc can result in anarchy.
“When court decisions are perceived as unjust, it can undermine the legitimacy of judicial institutions and the broader legal framework.
“This, in turn, can weaken the authority of the judiciary and other institutions responsible for administering justice.
“Injustice may lead to an increase in litigation as aggrieved parties seek to challenge unfair rulings or seek redress through the legal system.
“This can result in a backlog of cases and further strain on judicial resources.
“A lack of justice can deter investment and economic growth by creating uncertainty and instability which this moment in time does not require.
Other CSO chieftains who endorsed the document included Chibundu Uchegbu, Better Community Life Initiative, Owerri; Victor Dorawa Koreyo, Abraham’s Children Foundation, Afikpo, Ebonyi State; Comrade Nelson Nnanna Nwafor, Foundation for Environmental Rights, Advocacy & Development (FENRAD), Aba; Okoye Chuka Peter, Centre for Human Rights Advocacy and Wholesome Society (CEHRAWS), Enugu, and Amb. Peggy Chukwuemeka, Parent Child Intervention Centre (PCIC), Enugu.
