….Calls on NJC to sanction erring judges
Ahead of the 2027 general elections in the country, the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) has said, the growing judicial interference in the internal affairs of political parties posses a serious threat to the democracy of the country.
In a statement by the President of the NBA, Mazi Afam Osigwe, SAN on Friday, the association said it has been closely monitoring recent political and legal developments, particularly those linked to the interpretation and application of the Electoral Act.
The umbrella body of lawyers in the country expressed concern that lawyers and courts are increasingly engaging in matters explicitly barred by law, citing Section 83 of the Electoral Act, which prohibits courts from assuming jurisdiction over disputes relating to the internal affairs of political parties, including the granting of interim or interlocutory injunctions in such cases.
The NBA said, “Not only are courts denied jurisdiction to entertain any matter pertaining to the internal affairs of a political party, but they are also precluded from granting any interim or interlocutory injunction even where any action has been brought in violation of the Act.
“The section further provides that, where such an action is brought in negation of this provision, no interim or interlocutory injunction shall be entertained by the Court, but the Court shall suspend its ruling and deliver it at the stage of final judgment and shall give accelerated hearing to the matter”.
According to the NBA, there have been instances where lawyers file suits in clear violation of this provision, and courts proceed to grant orders regardless.
The association described such actions as an abuse of court process and warned that they could undermine democratic principles and turn the judiciary into a tool for political manipulation.
According to the statement noted, the misuse of legal processes for political advantage risks eroding public confidence in the justice system and cautioned its members to uphold their professional responsibilities.
The NBA decried situations where actions are not only instituted in Courts by lawyers in clear violation of the Electoral Act, but Courts purportedly grant interim and/or interlocutory injunctions in clear contempt of statutory provisions of the law.
“This does not augur well for our democracy. Democracy will not thrive in a situation where lawyers and courts take actions and decisions that not only negate our laws but also do violence to them. This emerging trend of subverting the clear letters of the Electoral Act and dragging courts into the internal affairs of political parties through disingenuous litigation, forum shopping, and malafide applications designed to secure undemocratic political advantage, bodes no good for our democracy”, Osigwe noted.
The NBA boss said, lawyers are ministers in the temple of justice and must not act as agents of partisan interests and further warned that any legal practitioner found deliberately filing cases to draw courts into intra-party disputes could face disciplinary action before the Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee (LPDC).
The association also called on the National Judicial Council (NJC) to make regulations to sanction judges who assume jurisdiction in matters clearly barred by law or grant orders in respect of intra-party disputes in violation of statutory provisions, or lends the authority of the court to partisan political maneuvering.
The NBA, he said, will not shy away from drawing the NJC’s attention to the actions of any judicial officer found to have acted in a manner inconsistent with the judicial oath, constitutional responsibilities, and the preservation of public confidence in the courts.
The NBA, in the statement titled, “Our laws and democracy must be protected at all times”, called on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to exercise its expanded supervisory powers with utmost neutrality, independence, and fidelity to democratic values.
“The Commission must not, under any circumstances, be perceived as a participant in political engineering or as an institution whose regulatory authority is deployed in a manner that weakens political pluralism”, the NBA said and added that, the INEC Chairman, being a distinguished Professor of Law and Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), is uniquely positioned to appreciate the constitutional implications of these developments.
“The NBA expects that the Commission, under his leadership, will ensure that its actions reflect independence, fairness, and strict adherence to democratic norms. The Bar is closely watching the conduct of the Commission and expects that its regulatory role will strengthen, not diminish, confidence in Nigeria’s democratic process”.
He said, the Bar is closely watching the conduct of the electoral body adding that INEC’s role must strengthen, rather than weaken, public trust in Nigeria’s democratic process.
Reaffirming its commitment to safeguarding the rule of law, the NBA said it would deploy all lawful measures, including disciplinary procedures, advisory opinions, and strategic litigation to prevent the misuse of judicial processes.
The association stressed that Nigeria’s democracy must not be weakened by legal maneuvering or institutional compromise, insisting that courts must remain impartial arbiters of justice while electoral bodies function as neutral regulators.
END
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