Presidential Election: ‘Don’t Bend The Law’ – Catholic Bishops Send Warning To Supreme Court

Presidential Election: ‘Don’t Bend The Law’ – Catholic Bishops Send Warning To Supreme Court

As candidates from the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Labour Party (LP), and other parties gear up to challenge the outcome of the 2023 general election in the Supreme Court, the Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria (CBCN) has called on the apex court to resist catering to the interests of any political party or bending the law.

The Bishops also criticized the Presidential Election Petition Court (PEPC) for its ruling that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) is not obliged to electronically transmit election results, despite the substantial investment in the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BIVAS) and Result Viewing Portal (ReV).

Addressing the Opening Ceremony of the 2023 Second Plenary Assembly of the CBCN, Archbishop Lucius Ugorji, the President of CBCN, expressed a hope for a day when all election results would be definitively settled at the polling units, rather than in the courts.

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He remarked that despite INEC’s assurances of delivering credible general elections in 2023, the elections fell short of the people’s legitimate expectations and failed to meet moral and legal standards.

The CBCN President observed that the confidence of citizens in the 2023 electoral process was undermined by the numerous pitfalls and irregularities evident before, during, and after the elections.

Archbishop Ugorji further stated that Nigerians were disappointed that INEC did not fulfill its promise to upload the presidential results in real-time.

“By the time the Chairman of INEC, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, declared the presidential results, the results from thousands of polling units had not been uploaded on the IRev and a high percentage of the uploaded results, required for the verification and authentication of the manual results, were defaced or blurred.

“In some instances, irrelevant objects were uploaded on the IRev. Contestants in the presidential election, who protested against the electoral process and the results hurriedly declared by the INEC Chairman, were advised to go to court, and they did.

“After hearing their petitions, the Presidential Election Petition Court (PEPC) delivered its ruling in a marathon judgement on 6 September 2023. The five Justices of the Election Petition Court unanimously dismissed the petitions.

“According to them, they lacked merit. Despite the billions of Naira of tax-payers money appropriated for the provision of the BIVAS technology as a game-changer in our general elections, the Judges in their ruling tried, among other things, to suggest that it was wrong to expect INEC to keep its promise or obey the electoral regulation of transmitting election results electronically in real-time from the polling units.

“While respecting the views of the Judges, two of the petitioners rejected their verdict as lacking in justice and so have decided to head to the Supreme Court to seek justice. As this case moves to the next level, the fate of the country continues to hang in the balance and the future of democracy in our land stands on the edge of a precipice.

“We pray and hope that the Supreme Court Judges will neither bend the law nor seek to satisfy the whims and caprices of any party. We also pray and hope for a day in our nation when all election results will be finally decided at the polling units and not at the Court”, he said.

Addressing the state of the nation, the Bishop emphasized that insecurity remains a significant challenge in the country. The situation is deteriorating in many communities as bandits, unidentified gunmen, Fulani herdsmen, and Boko Haram insurgents continue to terrorize the populace.

In his remarks, the President of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Archbishop Daniel Okoh, noted that the plenary session is occurring at a time when Nigerians are still enduring severe hardships due to harsh economic policies, past government mismanagement, and the prevalence of banditry and kidnapping.

Represented by the General Secretary of CAN, Apostle Professor Samson Fatokun, the CAN President stated that the prices of essential goods have surged beyond the means of ordinary citizens, and there seems to be no relief in sight.

“In addition, the new wave of military coups among our close neighbours and calls from certain quarters for military action against the coupists raise fears that living conditions may worsen in our country if that option is eventually taken by the Authority of the ECOWAS Heads of Government.