As the date for the 2023 general elections inches closer, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), on Monday, revealed that the Commission is currently facing over 600 litigations in different courts across the nation.
Vanguard reported that Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, chairman of the Commission, disclosed the information at a 307 capacity building workshop of Judges that will handle disputes likely to arise from the forthcoming elections.
He stressed that most of the cases pending against the electoral body, relate to the conduct of primaries by political parties.
Yakubu pointed out that it is unhealthy for the nation, that the Commission would be struggling with pre-election matters at a time they should be concerned with preparing the necessary logistics to conduct the forthcoming polls.
He added, “Infact, just recently, one political party served over 70 court processes on the Commission, seeking to compel it to accept list of candidates, long after the time for nomination of candidates had elapsed.”
The chairman admonished the Judiciary to pay strict adherence to precedents.
In his words, “Strict adherence to the principle of stare-decisis (precedent) is critical for us as election management body
“A situation where a trial court tries to vary the decision of the Supreme Court, puts the Commission in a very difficult situation.
“The job of politicians is to be purely partisan, but our job as INEC and the Judiciary requires absolute neutrality, may God help us.”
The Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Olukayode Ariwoola, while swearing-in the 307 judicial officers that will sit on 2023 election petition cases, warned the officers to shun actions that will bring bad reputation to the Judiciary as an institution.
He warned, “As the Chief Justice of Nigeria, I will not condone any act of recklessness or abuse of power from any of you.”
