Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) Urges INEC to Enforce Court Judgment on Electoral Offences
The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has called on the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Professor Mahmood Yakubu, to immediately enforce a court judgment ordering the commission to prosecute cases of bribery involving state governors, their deputies, and other electoral offences committed during the 2023 general elections.
The judgment was delivered by Justice Obiora Egwuatu on July 18, 2024, following a mandamus lawsuit brought by SERAP. The organization has expressed concern that INEC’s ongoing failure to obey the court judgment is contributing to electoral offences in several states, including the recently held governorship election in Edo State.
According to SERAP, the recurring cases of electoral bribery and violence make a mockery of Nigeria’s electoral process and participatory democracy. The organization has urged INEC to take immediate measures to comply with the court judgment, which includes seeking the appointment of independent counsel to investigate allegations of electoral offences and swiftly prosecuting all arrested electoral offenders.
SERAP has also raised concerns about the ongoing impunity enjoyed by suspected perpetrators of electoral offences, including those involved in off-cycle governorship elections in Kogi, Imo, and Bayelsa States. The organization believes that obeying the court judgment would help prevent and combat allegations of electoral offences and restore public trust and confidence in Nigeria’s electoral process.
The court judgment, which was delivered in lawsuit number FHC/ABJ/CS/583/2023, ordered INEC to investigate reports of electoral violence and other electoral offences committed during the 2023 general elections, identify suspected perpetrators and their sponsors, and ensure their effective prosecution. The judgment also directed INEC to promptly prosecute all arrested electoral offenders currently in custody.
SERAP has emphasized that INEC’s failure to obey the court judgment is violating Section 287 of the Nigerian Constitution 1999 (as amended), which imposes a binding obligation on all authorities and persons in Nigeria to comply with court verdicts. The organization has given INEC a seven-day ultimatum to comply with the judgment, warning that if it does not receive a response within that timeframe, it will consider pursuing contempt proceedings against INEC for its continued failure to obey the court judgment.
By complying with the court judgment, INEC would be demonstrating its willingness and ability to end the longstanding impunity for electoral offences in Nigeria and uphold the integrity of the country’s electoral process.
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