NASARAWA TRIBUNAL’S VERDICT

Playing on our religious divide will not advance

the national cause, argues Walid Jibrin

As to be expected, the verdict delivered on Monday, October 2, 2023, in Lafia, Nasarawa State by the Honourable Justice Ezekiel Oyeyemi Ajayi-led Governorship Election Tribunal has elicited varied responses from Nigerians across the country. The Tribunal looked into the governorship of Nasarawa State, which election was held on March 18, 2023.

Emmanuel David Ombugadu, who was the candidate of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), had petitioned the Tribunal complaining that he had scored the highest number of votes cast in that election and ought to be declared winner and sworn-into office as governor instead of the incumbent Governor Abdullahi Sule who, he said, was wrongly awarded victory by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

A majority of two members of the three-member Tribunal which sat, came to the conclusion that the petitioner’s petition had merit and awarded victory to him and ordered that a certificate of return be given to him by INEC and that he should be sworn-into office immediately. While many who have read or who listened to the 138-page ruling hailed the judgment, saying that justice has been done to the petitioner, Ombugadu, and his party, the PDP, a few have held the contrary opinion. They say the sentiment of religion was the deciding factor.

Right now, allegations are flying left, right, and centre that some influential persons and organizations are being recruited to influence decisions if the case progresses to the Appeal and Supreme Courts. In other words, there is the insinuation that those elevated upper courts will need to deviate from the point of law used by the tribunal in coming to judgment on the issue.

The name of country’s vice-president has featured prominently as one of the persons seeking to influence the superior courts by drafting prominent and influential Muslims into the service. Incidentally, the lone member of the three-man election tribunal who gave a dissenting opinion in favour of the incumbent governor is a Muslim. Similarly, the majority opinion delivered in favour of Ombugadu was from members who adhere to the Christian faith.

Whatever may be the contention by laymen and political actors, the Ombugadu judgment provides a good example to test the integrity of our judiciary. Surely, both judgments will be on trial’ by the Appeal and Supreme courts. Some grounds were formulated, contested, and pronouncements were made on them. Did Ombugadu have the highest number of votes cast or not? Were those votes validly earned or not? Were some votes wrongly awarded to his opponents or not? The appellate judges will surely take on each of these grounds and thrash them on the merit of the case advanced by the majority opinion.

The fact of the slim electoral victory of 841 votes may be painful to the supporters of Sule. But in electoral democracy, such slim victories even of one or two or three votes is what makes electoral contests such an exciting and worthy mode of getting officers into offices. It makes the contest a keen one, and this particular Nasarawa governorship election should be held as an example of a keen fight worthy of national example.

As a Muslim, I understand why the Ombugadu verdict has generated such resentment among some professors of my faith. Never in the history of the governorship contest in Nasarawa in this democratic dispensation has a Christian won a Muslim opponent. But if as the majority decision has said, it is a majority of the people of Nasarawa who have made the decision to try a Christian this time around, we must be ready to accept such a decision.

At several points in the course of their judgment, the justices kept saying that they would leave technicalities and focus on the merit of the case. If the appellate justices agree with them on all or most of their grounds, a great case will be made for our judiciary and, by extension, our politics. If there is a concurrence of the appellate justices’ opinion with those of the lower court, many Nigerians will learn not to leave issues of merit canvassed and go into our old, usual way of seeking to confuse issues by insinuating religion. Continuing to play on our religious divide is not going to help us to advance our national cause.

For the record, the entire campaign of Ombugadu was chaired by myself with Alhaji Usman Dubagari as the Secretary. Therefore, the claim from certain quarters that Ombugadu is being promoted by only the Christian leaders in Nasarawa State is unfounded.

The recent report by the highly respected human rights organization, Human Rights Writers Association, that AA Sule and his cohorts have embarked on a desperate and clandestine expedition to mobilize top ranking federal government officials including the Vice-President, traditional rulers and Muslim leaders to interfere in a judicial matter is condemnable. 

It is of paramount importance that the legal system operates independently and without external influence. The sanctity of our judicial processes must be upheld to ensure that justice is served and the rights of all parties involved are protected.

Undue interference with the judgement, be it by high-ranking government officials, traditional rulers, or religious leaders, will undermine the rule of law and erode public trust in the justice system.

Senator Jibrin, Sarkin Fulanin Nasarawa, was Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the PDP.