Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Femi Falana, expressed concerns about the unprecedented blackmail and intimidation faced by the judiciary regarding the presidential election petitions.
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He emphasized that such tactics were unnecessary since there is still the opportunity for appeal at the Supreme Court.
During an appearance on Channels Television’s Politics Today, Falana noted that election petitions have been a part of Nigeria’s history since colonial rule, but none has attracted this level of blackmail and intimidation of the judiciary.
“I am worried that people give the impression that everything ends with the judgment of the Court of Appeal, the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal. Any party that loses on Wednesday still has the opportunity to appeal to the Supreme Court. So, what is the basis for the cheap blackmail that is going on?” questioned the senior lawyer.
Falana attributed the blackmail and intimidation to new voters who believe their candidate must be declared the winner, emphasizing that election tribunals should focus on evidence, the application of the law, and delivering a just decision.
He emphasized the judges’ responsibility to examine the evidence, apply the law, and make decisions without succumbing to blackmail or intimidation. He reminded that those who lose and are aggrieved have the opportunity to approach the Supreme Court to demonstrate how the Court of Appeal may have erred.
The Court of Appeal announced that it would deliver judgment on the presidential election petitions on Wednesday and that interested television stations could broadcast the proceedings live.
The Labour Party (LP), the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), and the Allied Peoples Movement (APM), along with their presidential candidates, had petitioned the tribunal seeking to nullify President Bola Tinubu’s victory in the 2023 presidential election.
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