The Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja, on Friday, descended
heavily on the Independent National Electoral Commissioner, INEC, accusing it
of being partisan.
The appellate court said it was embarrassing that the
Commission could appear before it to act in favour of a party in an election
dispute, by disowning documents that it not only issued, but also duly
certified.
It decried that the electoral body has continued to “dance
naked in the market,” even though it was meant to assume a neutral stand in
election litigations.
“The INEC as an institution should be reminded of its role
in an election; to be an unbiased umpire between parties.
“It should stop behaving irresponsibly, having in mind that
its duty to conduct election has a direct bearing on peace and well-being of
the country.
“The role of INEC in election dispute should be limited to
the tendering of all the documents used in an election and explaining what they
were used for and how they were obtained.
“INEC should stop dancing naked in the market, pretending
that no one is seeing its nakedness and its dancing steps,” the court stated
while delivering judgement in a Bauchi State House of Assembly election appeal.
The lead judgement of a three-member panel of the court was delivered by Justice K. I. Amadi.
The panel, in its unanimous decision, nullified the election
of the Speaker of the Bauchi State House of Assembly, Abubakar Suleiman, who
was earlier declared the winner of Ningi Central Constituency in the state, by
INEC.
The court held that evidence before it established that the election was inconclusive.
Aside from voiding the Certificate of Return that was issued
to Suleiman who contested on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP,
the appellate court directed INEC to conduct a supplementary poll in 10 polling
units in the state, within 90 days.
The court further awarded a cost of N500, 000 against INEC.
The judgement followed an appeal that was brought before the
court by the candidate of the All Progressives Congress, APC, in the election,
Khalid Abdulmalik-Ningi.
INEC had declared that Suleiman of the PDP polled a total of
16, 866 votes to defeat his closest rival, Abdulmalik-Ningi of the APC, who
scored 15, 065 votes in the election that held on March 18.
However, dissatisfied with the outcome of the election, the
APC candidate lodged a petition before the State Assembly Election Petition
Tribunal.
The petitioner, among other things, alleged that results of
the election were cancelled due to over-voting or corrupt practices.
Even though INEC which was a Respondent in the matter,
denied the claim that there was over-voting, it however failed to produce any
witness before the tribunal which eventually dismissed the petition.
While faulting the decision of tribunal, the appellate court
noted that the Appellant brought nine witnesses that testified in respect of
the various polling units and also tendered certified copies of INEC documents
to support his case.
It held that going by Section 137 of the Electoral Act 2022,
the certified INEC documents were enough to sustain the allegation that the
election was not conducted in compliance with provisions of the law.
The court wondered why INEC denied that results of the
election were cancelled in some polling units, when its officials established
the same fact in Forms EC 40G that they signed and submitted to it.
It held that the tribunal was statutorily empowered to
accord probative value to the INEC documents which it said disclosed all
information required to prove the alleged non compliance.
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