Tribunals Struggle To Beat Constitutional Deadlines On Election Cases

By Uche Mbah

Election Petition Tribunals are dishing out judgements all in a rush to beat the constitutional deadline that requires them to finish all cases within six months of the elections.

The deadline is this September

Within the last one week, judgements are being churned out en mass, with many big names at the receiving end. Jubilation, however, are also part of the game.

For example, while the Senate Chief whip, Orji Kalu, lost his seat, Ike Ekweremadu, immediate past deputy senate President retained his own. In Oyo state, Kola Balogun retains his seat as Ajimobi lost.

Most of these cases are expected to end up at the Supreme Court, which in recent times had tried to elevate some Appeal Court Judges to increase their number to 21. Even with this number, it will be difficult to manage the barrage of cases that will come to the desk of the Supreme Court.

Analysts are seeing the judgement trend as being in line with public expectations, which, according to many, gives some glimmers of hope particularly in the expectations of the Presidential Election Tribunal, which will rule on the Atiku/Buhari case this morning.

It was also pointed out by analysts that regardless of the outcome of the case, whoever lost may appeal to the Supreme court which will be the final arbiter.

There has been much skepticism over the ability of the third estate to hold their own in recent times, judging by alleged intimidation of the judiciary since the inception of the Muhammadu Buhari administration. It started with the way Justice Sylvester Ngwuta was hounded and embarrassed by Security Agencies and charged for corruption, charges that were allegedly not sustained in court. Today, Ngwuta, who was number four in the Chief Justice of the Federation hierarchy, has been quarantined allegedly without being appointed into panels.

But the current CJ, Mohamed Tanko, has assured the nation that he is not going to be influenced by anybody. According to him, the only person he is afraid of is Allah-though in the same breath he lamented the poor funding of the Judiciary.