Former Deputy National Chairman of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Olabode George, and elders of Lagos State chapter of the party on Monday called for a review of the constitution to stop judges from declaring winners and losers of election.
At their meeting held in Lagos, they expressed worry that a situation where judges have taken over the job of electoral umpire as witnessed with the sack of some elected lawmakers and governors “is not good for the polity, Nigeria and the electoral system.”
The elders numbering 33 met at the Lugard Avenue, Ikoyi office, of Chief Bode George to discuss the state of the nation.
They expressed great worries about the conflicting and contradictory judgements coming from the country’s judiciary, saying “what is oozing from the third arm of government in the world’s most populous black nation is offensive to millions of Nigerians.”
The situation, according to them, portended anarchy when Nigerians no longer trust the third estate of the realm, pointing out that in many political cases, millions of Nigerians now hold the belief “and rightly so, that some judges deliver Judgements, NOT Justice.”
Some of the elders at the close-door meeting were former Lagos State deputy governor, Senator (Mrs) Kofoworola Bucknor Akerele; Mrs Onikepo Oshodi, Dr. Charles Akitoye, Dr. Amos Fawole, Dr. Seye O’Dairo, Hon. Abiola Ismail, Mr. Agbolarin Adegboyega, Hon. Malomo Adelabi, among others.
George, who is also the Atona Oodua of Yoruba land, while reading the statement jointly signed by the elders and titled: “When Nigerians no longer trust third estate of the realm, anarchy looms,” said instead of the judiciary pronouncing winners or losers, the judges can order rerun when they found out the right things have not been done.
He said the electorate is made up of Nigerians and majority of them do not belong to any political party, adding that it would send a wrong signal to Nigerians to begin to boycott elections.
“In our opinion, it is wrong to remove the power of the electorate to elect political leaders and for the Judiciary to tell us who the winners are.
“This is not good for the polity. This is not good for Nigeria. This is not good for our electoral system. A compromised judiciary is dangerous. Something urgent must be done to stop this malady,” George said.
He said the judiciary is facing the worst credibility challenge which was not the case in the past, saying eminent Nigerians knew the judicial and justice system in the country during the days of former Chief Justices of Nigeria, such as Justice Stafford Foster Sutton (1955 – 1958), Justice Adetokunbo Ademola (1958 – 1972), Justice Teslim Olawale Elias (1972 – 1975), Justice Darnley Arthur Alexander (1975 – 1979), Justice Atanda Fatai Williams (1979 – 1983), Justice Gabriel Ayo Irikefe (1985 – 1987) and Justice Muhammed Bello (1987 – 1995), the first Northerner to become Chief Justice of Nigeria, among others.
He said these were legal giants who stood their grounds against any form of victimisation or unnecessary manoeuvre from the executive branch of government, adding: “You dared not look at their faces or even try to bribe them.”
“So, the questions being asked today are, among others: ‘What exactly is the problem of the judiciary? Where did we get it wrong? Why is it difficult for the judiciary to assert its control over politicians and political parties? Why are technicalities being used to affirm electoral heists and in the process, undermine the will of the people and silence them? What is the meaning of a ‘typographical error’ when a judgement had already been delivered? Is it, according to some Nigerians, that the ‘real’ judgement was pushed aside and another read which has now led to a ‘typographical error?'” he said.
