Some civil society organisations (CSOs) have called for the review of the Appeal court verdict which upheld the sack of Plateau State Governor, Barr. Caleb Manasseh Mutfwang.
The coalition under the aegis National Civil Society Consultative Forum on Election Integrity made the call at a media briefing themed “Concerns over threat to multi-party system despite compliance with the electoral act, court orders and judicial independence post-2023 general elections” in Abuja on Tuesday.
The coalition vonvener, Mr Salaudeen Hashim, said judgment of the Appeal Court sitting in Abuja that nullified the election of Governor Mutfwang if left unattended to will pose danger to democracy.
They also bemoaned what they say is encroachment into judicial independence in the country.
“This type of judicial outcome will also breed hatred and voter apathy in subsequent elections. Evidence showed how several conflicting judgments handed down by several courts of record significantly constrained political participation and associative freedoms.
“The civic space declines when conflicting judgments influence electoral outcomes in a direction that is inconsistent with the wishes of the electorate.
“Conflicting court judgments also slow down the expeditious delivery of justice by increasing the number of cases requiring appellate consideration,” Hashim said.
He said that the Appeal Court panel based its decision on the Plateau State verdict on the premise that the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in Plateau State had no valid structure and had violated a state high court order that directed the party to conduct fresh congresses in the state.
He stated, “However, this claim is contradicted by the fact that the political party had complied with the court order and held a legitimate State Congress on the 25th of September 2021, where delegates from all the 17 local government areas of the state participated and elected their representatives.
“Therefore, the Appeal Court judgment that sacked all the elected members in the state, including the Governor, is seen as unjust, unfair, and baseless and we join our voices with legal luminaries, such as Femi Falana SAN, Daniel Bwala, Kalu Agu, and several Nigerian citizens, who have rejected and condemned the verdict and appeal to the Supreme Court to correct the anomaly.
“We urge political actors to refrain from any actions that may undermine the integrity of the judiciary or compromise the independence of judges. Attempts to exert undue influence, make unfounded allegations, or engage in any form of intimidation against the judiciary threaten the landscape of democratic infrastructure.”
