A Federal High Court in Abuja has once again halted the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, from providing the voters’ register to the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission ,RSIEC, for the upcoming local government election scheduled for October 5.
The court also prohibited the Inspector General of Police ,IGP, and the Department of State Services ,DSS, from participating or providing security for the local government election. Justice Peter Lifu delivered the ruling in a lawsuit brought by the All Progressives Congress ,APC, which challenged the legality of the processes leading to the scheduled election date.
The APC’s case was presented by a team of senior lawyers, including Joseph Daudu, Sebastine Hon, and Dr. Ogwu James Onoja, all Senior Advocates of Nigeria. Justice Lifu ruled that the RSIEC acted improperly in setting the October 5 date for the election, as it did not comply with relevant electoral laws.
The judge noted that the RSIEC violated local government election conduct laws by failing to publish the mandatory 90-day notice before fixing the election date. He emphasized that the update and revision of the voter register by INEC must be completed at least 90 days prior to the election date for it to be valid.
Consequently, Justice Lifu ordered INEC not to provide the certified voters’ register to RSIEC until all relevant laws have been fully observed. He further prohibited RSIEC from accepting or using any voters’ register from INEC for the October 5 local government election.
The APC had filed the lawsuit against INEC, RSIEC, the Rivers Attorney General, the IGP, and the DSS, alleging irregularities and violations in the management of the election by the Rivers State government. The party’s lawyers claimed that the legal requirements for publishing the election notice and updating the voter register were ignored.
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After reviewing the affidavits and evidence presented, Justice Lifu concurred with the APC, stating that the mandatory conditions for conducting a valid poll had not been met by RSIEC. He asserted that RSIEC was legally obligated to issue a 90-day public notice before setting the election date, emphasizing that failure to do so undermines the rule of law.
The judge ruled that INEC must complete the voter register update and revision 90 days prior to any election before releasing it. He declared all actions and decisions made by RSIEC regarding the local government poll to be illegal and nullified them.
Moreover, Justice Lifu barred INEC from releasing the voter register to the Rivers State government for the October 5 election and prohibited RSIEC from using any portion of it until all electoral laws are complied with. The IGP and DSS were also forbidden from participating in or providing security for any unlawful election.
“Election is a process that must be transparent and adhere to legal provisions,” the judge stated. “Compliance with the law is essential for democracy, and there should be no secrecy regarding the necessary conditions.”
Additionally, Justice Lifu struck down section 60(2) of the Rivers State Local Government Election Law, signed by former Governor Nyesom Wike on January 4, 2018, which prohibited aggrieved parties from filing cases regarding local government elections. He asserted that the 1999 Constitution grants access to the courts for any aggrieved citizens, emphasizing that no local government law can supersede the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
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