Defeated politicians who rejected the results of the 2015 general elections take their cases to the election petition tribunals with the expectation to get justice, FISAYO FALODI writes
The 2015 general elections held amid phenomenal display of political awareness by the electorate, high powered scheming and gimmicks by politicians, and an unprecedented polarity among the general populace of the country. Political analysts worried that Nigeria had never been so divided ahead of an election like what ensued pre-2015 elections.
The nation practically stood still for the general elections involving one Presidential, 29 governorship, 109 Senatorial, 360 House of Representatives and 1,152 State Legislative seats. The elections were held amid tension, insecurity, killings, kidnappings and ballot box snatching, among others.
Despite the rare display of statesmanship by President Goodluck Jonathan by conceding defeat to the President-elect, Gen Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), only few candidates in the just-concluded elections followed suit. Nigerian politicians hardly concede defeat after losing even in a credible election. This brings to mind the case of a former Ekiti State Governor, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, who conceded defeat to Governor Ayodele Fayose but whose party, the All Progressives Congress, went back to court to challenge the result of the election.
Likewise, defeated candidates in the 2015 general elections who felt that they were deprived of victory have headed to the various state election petition tribunals to contest the outcome of the polls. In their opinion, the opponents connived with the Independent National Electoral Commission to rob them of victory. They therefore vowed to retrieve the mandate at the election petition tribunal – a legal entity established by law to adjudicate on election matters.
The electoral process in Abia State was said to have been marred with controversies following alleged cancelling and reversing of results in three local government areas in the state by INEC officials.
The All Progressive Grand Alliance governorship candidate in Abia State, Dr. Alex Otti, who lost to the Peoples Democratic Party candidate, Dr. Okezie Ikpeazu, rejected the result of the election declared by INEC. He had told his supporters to remain calm and assured them that he would get justice at the tribunal.
He had said, “Election has come and gone but the battle has just started. Evil cannot prevail over good but if it seems to prevail, it is only for a while.
“Weeping can only endure for a night, joy comes in the morning. We will not resort to brigandage because two wrongs cannot make a right.”
APGA National Chairman, Chief Victor Ume, echoed Otti’s dissatisfaction with the election result.
He said, “APGA rejects the result of the poll as announced not because we cannot lose elections. We can accept losing an election through a credible process. We won the election clearly but our mandate was stolen. Accordingly, we will not resort to self help; we will challenge the result at the tribunal.’’
The APGA governorship candidate in Zamfara State, Alhaji Sani Shinkafi, also said that the April 11 election in the state was characterised by fraud. In a petition filed at the election tribunal in Gusau, the state capital, Shinkafi asked to be allowed to inspect all the relevant materials, including voters’ registers, card readers, incident forms, ballot papers and ballot boxes used for the conduct of the poll. The APGA candidate was defeated by Abdulaziz Yari of the APC.
The APC governorship candidate in Taraba State, Senator Aisha Alhassan, described the result of the election in the state as a daylight robbery.
Alhassan, who took solace in the APC’s pledge to challenge the election result at the tribunal, said, “The combined governorship elections in Taraba were characterised by violence, massive rigging, ballot box snatching and abuse of the card readers in substantial parts of the state by the PDP and their allies.”
The Ogun State chapter of the PDP also rejected the victory of the APC governorship candidate, Ibikunle Amosun. The PDP said its candidates in the last governorship and the House of Assembly elections should form government on May 29, 2015, but said they were denied the opportunity as a result of the fraud that characterised the polls.
The PDP Chairman in the state, Mr. Adebayo Dayo, is convinced that the party’s governorship candidate, Gboyega Isiaka, won the poll, but was rigged out by the ruling APC which manipulated the results at the collation centres.
Dayo said, “We are going to the tribunal to challenge the results of the governorship and House of Assembly elections. We are already putting our facts together.”
But the Director General, Senator Ibikunle Amosun Campaign Organisation, Chief Bode Mustapha, described the allegation of rigging against the APC as unfounded.
The Justice J.G. Abunsaga-led tribunal has received no fewer than 36 petitions in Oyo State.
A former governor in the state, Senator Rashidi Ladoja, who contested the April 11 election on the platform of the Accord Party, felt that he was robbed of victory in the poll.
Unlike the three other candidates – Otunba Adebayo Alao-Akala of the Labour Party, Senator Teslim Folarin of PDP and Mr. Seyi Makinde of Social Democratic Party – who were said to have conceded defeat, Ladoja had begun legal proceedings to challenge the victory of the APC candidate, Governor Abiola Ajimobi.
At the inaugural sitting of the National and state House of Assembly election tribunal in Oyo State, Justice Abunsaga, said that the tribunal had received 36 petitions in respect of the results of the elections into the National Assembly and state House of Assembly in the state.
He said 12 petitions were received over the National Assembly elections, while 24 were for the state House of Assembly poll. He sought the cooperation of all the counsel and warned that the panel would not exceed the 180 days stipulated by the constitution to wind up all the matters.
“We shall be firm on all issues. Election petition tribunal is time bound. Every petition filed must be heard and dispensed with within the 180 days stipulated by the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria,” he said.
To the PDP governorship candidate in Lagos State, Mr. Jimi Agbaje, both his APC counterpart, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode, and INEC have a case to answer at the tribunal. Agbaje said some irregularities which contravened the provisions of the Electoral Act were observed during the election. He has therefore got the tribunal’s nod to inspect all the polling materials used for the conduct of the election. The tribunal also ordered the electoral body to provide Certified True Copies of all polling documents including printed data in each polling unit from the card reader machines for inspection by Agbaje.
The three-man tribunal, led by Justice Muhammad Sirajo, gave the order while ruling on a motion ex-parte filed by Agbaje’s counsel, Clement Onwuenmunor.
The defeated APC governorship candidate in Gombe State, Alhaji Unuwa Yahaya, also vowed to leave no stone unturned to retrieve his perceived stolen mandate from the PDP candidate, Governor Ibrahim Dankwambo.
Yahaya’s counsel, Niyi Idowu, while submitting his client’s petition at the election petition tribunal in Gombe, had said the decision was aimed at seeking justice.
He said, “APC won the election but was denied victory by some elements. We brought the case to the tribunal to reclaim the mandate given to us by the people. The submission of the petition was in fulfilment of the requirements of the law and the electoral process, which granted aggrieved parties the right to present their grievances rather than taking the laws into their hands.”
The Senator representing Enugu East, Gilbert Nnaji, will have to seek the service of a competent legal team to defend his re-election. Nnaji’s main contender and a former governor, Chimaroke Nnamani, who contested on the platform of the Peoples for Democratic Change, had asked the election petition tribunal to sack him.
Chairman of the PDC in Enugu State, Mr. Sunday Ani, confirmed that Nnamani had petitioned the tribunal in Enugu to challenge the result declared by INEC. He explained that the election was characterised by widespread irregularities.
Ani said, “On March 28, 2015, the good people of Enugu East Senatorial District turned out en masse to perform their civic duty. They cast their votes overwhelmingly for the candidate of our party, Senator Chimaroke Nnamani, to represent them in the Senate.
“However, to their shock and disbelief, another candidate was announced as the winner. Against this background, Nnamani accepted the responsibility to reclaim the mandate, and this he has done by petitioning the National Assembly Election Petition Tribunal.”
Social commentators have, however, hailed the civil approach the defeated candidates have adopted to air their grievances against the conduct of the elections. The commentators asked them to display more maturity to ensure that the tribunals were prevented from being attacked by their supporters. They also asked members of the tribunals to abide by the provisions of the law while carrying out their duty.
A political analyst, Mr. Dare Adeiya, asked the aggrieved politicians to prevail on their supporters to continue to remain calm, if truly they believed in sanctity of the law.
He said, “The aggrieved politicians deserve commendation for choosing not to engage in self-help in seeking justice. They therefore need to prove to Nigerians by their attitude at the tribunal that they can be trusted by their words. Promising to remain calm is not enough; they should be seen fulfilling the promise.”
Adeiya also urged members of the tribunals to abide by the ethics of their profession.
“The judges should resist intimidation and ensure that they don’t exceed the 180 days limit allowed by the law to adjudicate on all election matters brought before them,” he said.
The Chairman, Coalition Against Corrupt Leaders, Mr. Debo Adeniran, apart from canvassing for fair hearing by members of the tribunal, called on them to follow due process in their adjudication.
He equally wants the President, Court of Appeal, to set up an independent panel to monitor the activities of the tribunals’ members to ensure justice for all concerned.
Adeniran said, “Members of the tribunals should bear no sympathy for any of the contending political parties so that at the end of the day, they would be seen to be fair.
“They should be conscious of the need for the integrity of the outcome of their adjudication and refrain from engaging in secret communication with litigants.”
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