INEC: Multiple Court Orders, Verdicts Threat To 2023 Polls

INEC: Multiple Court Orders, Verdicts Threat To 2023 Polls
Festus Okoye

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has called on the leadership of the Judiciary and the Nigeria Bar Association to curb multiple orders and judgments by courts of coordinate jurisdiction on election matters.

“The leadership of the bar association and the leadership of the judiciary must wade into this descent to forum shopping and the multiplicity of orders and judgements from courts of coordinate jurisdiction,” he said.

“This is urgent, it is imperative and cannot be carried over to the 2023 general election.”

Festus Okoye, the INEC national commissioner and chairman Information and Voter Education Committee, spoke on the matter at the implementation meeting of the voter education and publicity department in Anambra on Tuesday.

Also Read: Anambra Guber Poll: We Can Only Replace Candidates Based On Court Order, Says INEC

He stated that the commission often complains about the frequency with which courts issued orders which he said have “far-reaching implications on the conduct of the Anambra state governorship election”.

“Some of the orders have the tendency of eroding the powers of the Commission and compromising its independence, powers, and timelines for the conduct of the upcoming election,” he said.

Okoye explained that the commission usually issues access codes to the national chairman of political parties with which they upload the personal details and list of their candidates electronically.

He said this has prevented the demonstrations and violence normally witnessed in the commission’s premises by different party factions.

“Unfortunately, some of the judgements and orders given especially on the primary elections in Anambra state have bypassed our portal and sought to restore the manual submission of the List and Personal Particulars of candidates,” he said.