INEC Needs to Act Fast on Suspended REC

If the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) is really determined to prosecute the suspended Adamawa State Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC), Hudu Yunusa Ari, then the refusal of the Federal High Court in Abuja to extend its interim order issued on July 10, 2023, stopping it, the Inspector General of Police (IG), and the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) from prosecuting him should be a perfect opportunity to arraign him in court.

INEC was seeking the prosecution of the suspended REC for declaring Senator Aishatu Dahiru, also known as Binani, the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), as the winner of the Adamawa State governorship election on April 15, 2023 while vote counting was still ongoing.

But the court ordered the electoral body to maintain the status quo pending the determination of the suit to stop the prosecution.

The court also requested the defendants to appear before it on July 18 to show cause as to why they should not be permanently restrained from prosecuting the suspended Adamawa State REC

During last week’s proceedings, INEC’s counsel, Rotimi Jacobs (SAN), informed the court that the applicant had not served the defendants with the court’s July 10 order. Jacobs, who also contested the competence and jurisdiction of the court to entertain the matter in a counter affidavit to the motion, stated that the lifespan of the interim order expired on July 18.

However, counsel for Binani, Michael Aondoaka (SAN), argued that the interim order had not expired as the defendants had not shown cause as directed by the court. He emphasised that INEC’s counsel could not claim not to have been served with the court’s processes as he had participated in the matter.

The trial judge, Justice Donatus Okorowo, adjourned the case till Monday, July 24 for a hearing on the originating summons served on the defendants in court last Tuesday.

The court refused to extend the interim order halting the prosecution of the suspended Adamawa State REC.

Many saw the order by the court to stop Yunusa-Ari’s prosecution as a carefully designed plot to shield him from standing trial for the crime he brazenly committed. They want the suspended REC to be dealt with to serve as a deterrent to others.

With the court’s refusal to extend the order, many have urged INEC to quickly arraign him.