Peter Obi, the Labour Party’s presidential candidate in the election for president on February 25, has issued a warning to corrupt “judiciary cultists” not to undermine Nigeria and its democracy by their connections to influential politicians.
Mr. Obi made the remark on Tuesday via his Twitter account as part of his ongoing efforts to legally and politically push for the overturning of the election results, insisting on the as-yet-unproven claim that he is the legitimate winner.
The former governor of Anambra reaffirmed in a forceful speech that political leaders shouldn’t ostentatiously hold titles for which they lack the honor to stand behind them.
He said that in situations where there is public doubt as to the authenticity of claims made by political leaders, “it is the judiciary’s role, when called upon, to uphold the honour of the titles through transparent rulings. Only through such judicial interventions can the public be protected from the tyranny of dubious and duplicitous characters and identity fraudsters,” he said.
“In such situations, the judiciary has a bounding duty to protect society’s value system. This is one of the obligations of an impartial judiciary in a democracy.
“However, when the fairness of the judiciary is not assured, and the transparency of judiciary operatives is uncertain, the rule of law will come under severe threat. Once ordinary people lose faith in the fairness of the judiciary, the rule of law is threatened.
“With it, faith in democracy comes under threat as well. A society is endangered when the rule of the powerful and the rule of the rich and the mighty replaces the rule of law. When that happens, justice becomes a commodity to be traded between the rich and powerful and a cult of corrupt judiciary operatives,” he added.
Both Mr. Obi and the opposition candidate from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, had their petitions dismissed after a drawn-out decision by the presidential election tribunal of the Court of Appeal. The tribunal cited the petitions’ lack of merit and inability to substantiate their claims. For opposition lawmakers who had set their sights on ousting President Bola Tinubu from the Aso Rock Mansion, this ruling represented a severe blow.
While additional evidence of certificate fabrication and identity misrepresentation is now before the nation’s highest court, the presidential candidates have changed their focus from challenging the election results to calls for a potential disqualification of Mr. Tinubu and subsequent repeat. The decision regarding the acceptance or rejection of this evidence now looms on the horizon, poised to determine the course of Nigeria’s political future.Like many other political observers, Mr Obi’s position alludes to the fact that Nigeria’s judiciary and its perceived untoward politicisation make it impossible for appellants before it to have enough confidence in its impartiality and ability to deliver a justifiable verdict.
