FEATURE ARTICLE

Omoh Tsatsaku Ojior, Ph.D.Thursday, April 26, 2007
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THE COURT AND THE SURVIVAL OF THE NIGERIAN DEMOCRACY


t is the Nigerian court that will save Nigeria and the Nigerian democracy. The reactions of the people to the emerging outcome of the April 14, 2007 general elections in Nigeria are showing that the people are regaining their Consciousness. In other words, the people are becoming aware of their environment as their mental state has started to interact with the sensations within their surroundings and, they are thereby realizing through reasoning which bringing about imagination, aspiration and inspiration. The people are beginning to see that the responsibility of ensuring the certainty and the sanctity of their life is theirs and no one else. This was the reason they all came out in mass ready to cast their votes which they were denied. I congratulate the Nigerian electorates who defiled the threats of the bandits who are the enemies of political progress in Nigeria; those Nigerians who think that Nigeria should remain what it has been in their hands. I salute the market women, the commoners, some of the youths who refused to be used as instruments of fraudulent and immoral practices; and I salute the intellectuals among the well meaning citizens who are now saying that enough is enough of the banditry; and I congratulate those well meaning politicians on whose behalf, the conscientious majority of the people are willing to lay down their life in order that they may have the opportunity to govern.


Each election in Nigeria and the behaviours of those who want to rule over the people including that of the governments who had ruled over them since the flag independence have brought pains and anguish to them without restraint. Well meaning Nigerians and friends of Nigeria, at home and abroad have looked forward to these recent held elections with optimism for success. Those rogues, the vote riggers, snatchers of ballot boxes and those daft, imbecile and ignorant among some of the greedy politicians who kill and maimed innocent citizens will want to stop at nothing to achieve their goal. One does not have to describe a group of human beings this way; it may not be the best way to reform such people, but if such a group does exist, yes, such human beings should not be given words of praise. It is the human feelings in oneself that has been surfacing occasionally since the last elections with their ugliness as exhibited by some politicians in Nigeria during the process. The descriptions of what went on during the voting as narrated by eye witness accounts and as reported by the media including the Nigeria Television Authority NTA, it is difficult to convince any sane person that the elections were fair and free; free enough to allow the formation of a government by such people who were hand-picked under such circumstance.

Those who could kill their fellow human beings before hand upon whom they want to rule over do not qualify for the right to enjoy the trust that is normally placed in the hands of those who should govern the people. If allowed, a situation in which a rat is given to a cat to watch, will arise. Nigerians should not allow the type of a situation to arise in Nigeria any more. It has been the case for so long. Since Nigerians are operating their Constitution for the first time, the Court should now come to the rescue of the people and country. The men and women of the Nigerian judiciary should shirk their responsibilities no more; they have been doing it up to this time. What has a beginning must have and end; to the men and women of this �noble profession,� enough is enough if the nobility of the profession must have a meaning. One does not want to go into history as how the Nigerian court and its functionaries had shirked their responsibilities to the people and the nation. From all indications, the recent elections were reported to have been rigged. Apart from all other persons� alleged riggings, in a situation where the out-going President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo in his modesty has said that the elections were not perfect, left to me, one should be able to say that the elections were rigged. Also where the President of the Senate, Chief Ken Nnamani seemed to have candidly said that the elections were rigged, to the rest of the common people, the contest should be said to have been a disaster and subject to nullity.

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The Court has a lot on its hands with a duty to diligently perform now that the presidential contest is over. We know that many aggrieved citizens who are unhappy with the impalatable conduct of all the recent elections will besiege the Court for the restitution of their civic and constitutional rights including justice. Therefore, the Chief Justice should as a matter of urgency constitute as prescribed by the Constitution in all the states, electoral tribunals with men and women of proven probity to determine the validities or invalidities of those who have been declared elected by INEC. The Court must deliver Nigerians from the hands of tyrannical puppets in the country. A situation where a vice president, while still in that position is permitted by the court to contest the position of the presidency in which he holds the position of the vice. Meanwhile the individual was still legally a member of that party in which he was serving as the vice president while contesting at the same time for the presidency of the country under another political party. Although, we do not have the legal rationale nor was there an explanation of the constitutional provision guarantying such a wind-fall. The court has a responsibility to put the explanation before the Nigerians populace as to why Atiku was still in race for the presidential villa.

Nigerians should know that the whole world is watching to see how they scale through trying times. As a people whose country is adjudged as the professed leader of Africa, Nigerians must now chose to grow up and they must choose between bad and evil. It is a shame that the few who are selfish and ignorant amongst the people are ruining the entire good reputation of the lots of Nigerians and the nation. It is a painful situation where most Nigerians now stand scorned where ever they are due to the ugly character of the few ones. Nigerians should rectify their status before the international community. Like President Obasanjo said on Saturday, those who have lost morality in their own home elections are trying to moralized Nigerians, but a close look will show that it is the fault of Nigerians.

The Court, therefore, from today on in Nigeria, must assume the role of judicial activism. Judicial Activism is a concept of �interpretation of the Constitution which holds that the spirit of the times, the values of the justices, and the needs of the nation may legitimately influence the decisions of a court, particularly the Supreme Court.� Correctly, the spirit of the time in Nigeria calls for judicial activism; the justices in the country have been lacking any appreciable values, therefore, there is the need now for judicial activism and the needs of the nation now have never been more crucial hence its call for a legitimate influence of the Court, all the courts in the country especially the Supreme Court of Nigeria.

The Court must exercise its independence in obedience to the Constitution establishing it and the Court�s freedom to exercise its function in consonance with the Nigerian Federal System of Government must not be abridged. It was gladdening to read where the seven-man Jurists of the Supreme Court recently were admonishing the government through its lawyer. The government lawyer, probably the Attorney General had filed an appeal against the judgment of the Court in the case involving Atiku and the government. In the admonitions, the jurists told the plaintiff to tell his boss (the government) that the jurists were not members of the PDP, the governing political party. That is how it should be. No court or any member of the bench should behave as if he or she and the Court are an appendage of government in a matter between government and a citizen or a group of citizens and government. The members of the Nigerian armed forces including the police of the country do the same thing all the time. They behave ignorantly as if they are employed only to protect government and its officials against the interests and members of the general public who are not high government functionaries. All government law enforcement agencies and their members must operate and work in the general interests of the people and the country. They must not be seen as opponents or enemies of the people as it has been, which was the reason the police in the recent elections, as have always been, were seen colluding with some politicians hijacking ballot boxes away in favor of the ruling political party. The law enforcement is an appendage of the judicial branch which may be the reason for such timid behaviour of members of the Nigerian court, members of the bar and the bench.

The judicial branch is �the court systems of local, state, and federal governments, responsible for interpreting the laws passed by the legislative branch and enforced by the executive branch.� The courts try criminal cases in which a law may have been violated or civil cases or disputes between parties over rights or responsibilities. It is the duty of the court to attempt to resolve conflicts impartially in order to protect the individual rights guaranteed by the Constitution, within the bonds of justice as defined by law. In this era of the Nigerian court, there should be no room for a kangaroo court. A kangaroo court is a court in which the principles of justice are ignored; it is a court characterized by incompetence and dishonesty. Also, during this era of rebuilding of the character of the Nigerian nation and the coming to a realization and awareness of the people, the court should be careful not to characterize itself or maintain a relationship with what is known in the judiciary as judicial restraint. Judicial restraint is a situation in which judges are reluctant to declare legislative enactments unconstitutional unless the conflict between the enactment and the constitution is obvious. Rather, at this time in Nigeria, judicial activism is a preferred order for the Court.

Nigerians should use the court to their advantage this time because the Court is realizing the responsibility on its hands right now. They cannot shirk their responsibility this time. The world is watching. The tribunals and the Court must be impartial. The low turn-out for the presidential poll is a warning for Nigerian so-called elites and those who are eager to rule. The power of the people in a democracy cannot be under mind because superior power. Members of the bar in Nigeria should be careful on how they pursue federal appointments which may be one of the reasons every Nigerian lawyer wants to be a SAN whether the quality of their legal knowledge and experience merit such honour. They need to nationalize the practice of law in Nigeria. They should design Nigerian outfits for their wearing in stead of the current synthetic or plastic material they put on in the courtroom in which there may not be air-condition or electricity to cool the courtroom. If only for the climate that is unsuitable for such uniform that can only be useful in the artic environment, the Nigerian lawyer should be proud to be a Nigerian as opposed to being a British. Let men of the profession repair Nigeria through their practice. Let the Court and the law assists to normalize the life of every Nigerian through proper and effective adjudication. It is only Nigerians who can save Nigeria. We can ill afford another era of colonization; it is good Nigerians know that the imperialists are watching.