ANXIETY AS NIGERIANS BEGIN THEIR LONG WAIT FOR TRIBUNALS

The supplemental elections in 2,660 polling units (PUS) across Nigeria on April 15 concluded the 2023 general elections.

Following violence, cancelled voting, late arrival of materials, and other factors, 185 Local Government Areas in over 20 states held reruns of gubernatorial, State Assembly, senatorial, and House of Representatives elections.

Adamawa, Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Ebonyi, Edo, Ekiti, Enugu, Imo, Jigawa, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi, Kogi, Niger, Ogun, Oyo, Rivers, Taraba, Sokoto, Yobe, and Zamfara are among the states.

They claim that a breach occurred due to the breakdown of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) and the failure to timely update the INEC Result Viewing Portal (IRev).

Professor Mahmood Yakubu had pledged that the results would be available in real time, as they were during the Osun gubernatorial election on July 16.

The INEC chairman denied claims that the commission was intending to abandon transmission via PUS during a media briefing in November 2022.

"The commission will upload polling unit level results and citizens will have access to those results in real-time. This innovation was introduced by the commission, the commission cannot undermine itself," he noted.

"The results were uploaded without problems until late afternoon when continuous glitches were observed. INEC technicians, who were also at the national collation centre in Abuja, commenced work on the site.

FixPolitics, a campaign led by a former Minister, Oby Ezekwesili, stated days later that the disputed results had caused the population to hate INEC and question the integrity of the ballot and the process.

In an interview with DAILY POST, a citizen close to the commission detailed the IT department's efforts to maintain the IReV portal operational throughout the presidential election.

"The results were uploaded without problems until late afternoon when continuous glitches were observed. INEC technicians, who were also at the national collation centre in Abuja, commenced work on the site.

"That took about two hours but by then, Nigerians, officers on the field and agents were understandably in a panic mode. If you remember, the site came up again and more results were uploaded.

"I agree that INEC should have handled communication better. I also believe they wanted to deliver the best election but you cannot rule out human errors, questionable staff, politicians and security personnel," he said.

The source also discussed BVAS and the transfer of Chidi Nwafor, the ex-INEC Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Director, to Enugu as the Administrative Secretary prior to the election.

"Those linking Chidi and BVAS are not informed; it was not a one-man invention. He and the ICT team developed the system, so other engineers know everything about it.

"The good thing is that the contents of BVAS are safe and secure, meaning a number of aggrieved candidates will be able to successfully prove their cases in court."

In his contribution, a legal practitioner, Festus Ogun told DAILY POST that the general elections "leave quite a lot to be desired".

"As an election lawyer and a citizen, the level of inefficiencies in the conduct is unprecedented. INEC under-delivered and didn't meet the expectations of Nigerians.

"Clearly, as a result of the failure on the part of INEC to conduct a free, fair, transparent and credible election, the duty has shifted to our tribunals," the rights activist added.

However, Nigerians following track are concerned about the apparent delay at the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal (PEPT) and the State Election Petition Tribunals, which have the authority to remove elected candidates even after they have been sworn in.

Petitions must be filed within 21 days of the declaration of results, according to Section 132 (7) and (8) of the Electoral Act of 2022, and tribunals must give judgements within six months of the petition date.

The PEPT secretariat, five standard bearers, and their parties have filed separate petitions against Tinubu and the APC at the Court of Appeal in Abuja.

They are Nnadi Osita, Action Peoples Party (APP); Solomon Okangbuan, Action Alliance (AA); Chichi Ojei, Allied Peoples Movement (APM); Peter Obi, Labour Party (LP), and Atiku Abubakar, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

The allegations center on Okanigbuan's purported exclusion from the ballot, Tinubu's educational background, alleged age fraud, and a drug trafficking charge in the United States of America.

Others are Section 154 of the 1999 Constitution (25 percent of votes in the FCT); a candidate standing for presidential election but also earlier a senatorial candidate (VP-elect Kashim Shettima). Shettima replaced the placeholder, Kabiru Masari.

While the nation and the foreign community await the tribunal to begin day-to-day hearings, the President-elect, the ruling party, and INEC have answered to all arguments.

Meanwhile, the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) President, Yakubu Maikyau (SAN), legal luminary Femi Falana (SAN), parties, and stakeholders have requested that the proceedings be televised live.

According to Olisa Agbakoba (SAN), if the judicial systems are proactive, the presidential tribunal could conclude hearings within seven days.