Ref: Intersociety/SBCHROs/NG/002/05/016/Int./Democracies/UN
1. The
United Nations Secretary General
C/O The UN Special
Representative in Nigeria
The UN House, 617/618
Diplomatic Zone
Central Business
District, Garki, Abuja, Nigeria
2. The Apostolic
Nuncio (Pope’s Ambassador to Nigeria)
Vatican Apostolic
Nunciature in Nigeria
Pope John Paul Crescent,
Maitama
FCT, Abuja, Nigeria
3. The United Nations
High Commissioner for Human Rights (UNHCHR)
Office of the UN High
Commissioner for Human Rights
Palais Wilson, 52 rue
des Paquis
CH-1201, Geneva,
Switzerland
4. The United
States Ambassador to Nigeria
Embassy of the United
States, Plot 1075 Diplomatic Drive
Central District Area,
FCT, Abuja, Nigeria
5. The Head,
Delegation of the European Union to Nigeria & ECOWAS
Europe House, 21st
Crescent, Off Constitution Avenue
Central Business
District, Garki, Abuja, Nigeria
6. The EU High
Representative for Foreign Affairs & Security (Federica Mogherini)
The European Commission
Headquarters
Rue de la Loi/Wetstraat
200
1049 Brussels, Belgium
7. The British High
Commissioner to Nigeria
The British High
Commission, 11, Torrrens Street, Off Mississippi Street
Maitama, FCT, Abuja,
Nigeria
8. The Head, African
Research Group/Dep. Head/Research Analyst (Dr. Clare Thomas)
UK Foreign &
Commonwealth Office, African Directorate
King Charles Street,
London SW1A 2AH
9. The
Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany to Nigeria
Embassy of Germany, 9,
Lake Maracaibo Close
Maitama, FCT, Abuja,
Nigeria
10. The
Canadian High Commissioner to Nigeria
The Canadian High
Commission
15, Bobo Street,
Maitama, FCT, Abuja, Nigeria
11. The
Ambassador of the Republic of France to Nigeria
The Embassy of France,
7, Udi Hills Street
Off Aso Drive, Maitama,
FCT, Abuja, Nigeria
12. The
Brazilian Ambassador to Nigeria
Brazilian Embassy, 324,
Diplomatic Drive
Central Business
District, Garki, FCT, Abuja, Nigeria
13. The Swedish
Ambassador to Nigeria
Embassy of Sweden, 41,
T.Y. Danjuma Street
Asokoro District, FCT,
Abuja, Nigeria
14. The Austrian
Ambassador to Nigeria
Embassy of Austria, Plot
9, Usuma Street
Maitama District, FCT,
Abuja, Nigeria
15. The Ambassador of
the Netherlands to Nigeria
Embassy of the
Netherlands, the EU Common Embassy Complex
21st
Crescent, Off Constitution Avenue
FCT, Abuja, Nigeria
16. The Ambassador of
Switzerland to Nigeria
Embassy of Switzerland,
157, Adetokunbo Ademola Crescent
Wuse 11, FCT, Abuja,
Nigeria
17. The Belgian Head of
Mission/ Ambassador to Nigeria
Embassy of Belgium, 9
Usuma Street
Maitama District, FCT,
Abuja, Nigeria
18. The
Japanese Ambassador to Nigeria
Embassy of Japan, 9,
Bobo Street
Off Gana Street,
Maitama, FCT, Abuja, Nigeria
19. The
Australian High Commissioner to Nigeria
The Australian High Commission,
Fifth Floor, Auckland Center
48, Aguiyi Ironsi
Street, Maitama, FCT, Abuja, Nigeria
20. The
Indian High Commissioner to Nigeria
The High Commission of
India, 15, Rio Negro Close
Off Yedseram Street, Maitama, FCT, Abuja,
Nigeria
Your
Excellencies,
Before INEC Collapses Democracy In Nigeria: Our Case Against The
Commission Over Outstanding Parliamentary Polls & Call For Your Urgent
Diplomatic Intervention (1)
(Onitsha Nigeria, 11th of May
2016)-The leadership of International
Society for Civil Liberties & the Rule of Law (Intersociety); supported
by nine other group-members of the Southeast
Based Coalition of Human Rights Organizations (SBCHROs), comprising: Anambra
State Branch of the Civil Liberties Organization (CLO), Center for Human Rights
& Peace Advocacy (CHRPA), Human Rights Club (a project of LRRDC)(HRC),
Forum for Justice, Equity & Defense of Human Rights (FJEDHR), Society
Advocacy Watch Project (SPAW), Anambra Human Rights Forum (AHRF), Southeast
Good Governance Forum (SGGF), International Solidarity for Peace & Human
Rights Initiative (ITERSOLIDARITY) and Igbo Ekunie Initiative (pan Igbo rights
advocacy group) have resolved to write Your Excellencies concerning the subject matter underlined above
and it is upon the resolution that this is letter is rested.
Our writing Your Excellencies is in recognition of the noble roles of Your Excellencies’ home governments as
the world’s leading democracies and great economies under the United Nations
System and their immense contributions in the advancement of democracy, rule of
law, global security and respect for human rights across the world and Nigeria
in particular.
As Your
Excellencies may be aware, Nigeria is a multi ethnic, cultural, linguistic
and religious country of estimated 174million people, supposedly governed by
democratic constitutionalism and pluralism. For purposes of democratic policies
and governance, the country maintains 17, 500 top public offices and their
holders, by way of election and appointment. Of the country’s 17,500 public
offices and their holders, 4,017 are appointive and 13,483 elective; out of
which, 11,788 are made up of elected Local Government Councils’ chairpersons,
deputy chairpersons and councilors, while 1,695 others occupy all Federal and
States’ elective offices in the country. There are 774 constitutionally
recognized Local Government Councils in Nigeria governed by 11,788 supposedly
elected officials. Elections into the 11,788 Local Government Councils’
elective offices are constitutionally handled by the States Independent
Electoral Commissions (SIECs) created by Section 197 (1) (b) of the country’s
1999 Constitution and spelt out in supplementary Sections 3 and 4 of the Part 11 (B) of the same Constitution;
while elections into the 1,695 top Federal and States’ elective offices are
constitutionally conducted by INEC in accordance with relevant provisions of
the 1999 Constitution.
Be further informed Your Excellencies that by virtue of Section 153 (1) (f) of the 1999
Constitution (amended in 2011), the Independent National Electoral Commission
(INEC) was created. The 1,695 Federal and States elective offices under
reference are composed of the president and the vice president, 36 State
governors and the 36 State deputy governors, 109 senators, 360 members of the
house of reps and 1,152 State legislators.
The powers and functions of INEC as Nigeria’s chief electoral umpire are
expressly contained in Section 153 (1) (f) of the 1999 Constitution and
supplementary Sections 14 and 15 of Part
1 of the Third Schedule to the same Constitution, alongside INEC
Establishment Act of 2004 and the Electoral Act of the Federation of Nigeria
2010.
In all, processes and procedures for
conduct of the elections above mentioned, their outcomes and judicial resolutions
are governed by the trio of the 1999 Constitution, the Electoral Act of 2010
and the decided cases mandatorily rooted in the Nigeria’s Constitution of 1999
and its Electoral Act of 2010, while the functions, dos and don’ts of the INEC
staffs and management are provided in the INEC Establishment Act of 2004. In March and April 2015, Nigeria held its
general elections with the exception of its Local Government Councils’ polls
which are staggered in shape. The National Legislative or Parliamentary (senate
and house of reps) polls were held on March 28, 2015 and the outcomes of such
polls in the country are usually followed by post election judicial reviews
within stipulated timeframes.
Those involving the
president and the vice president originally start from the Appeal Court,
lasting for six months and appealable at the Supreme Court, lasting for two
months, totaling eight months. Those involving governorship and deputy
governorship are originally commenced at the Election Petition Tribunal (i.e.
High Court), lasting for six months and appealable twice at the appellate
(court of appeal) and apex (supreme) courts lasting for four months, totaling
ten months. Those involving Senate, House of Reps and State Legislative
Assembly are originally commenced at the Legislative Election Tribunal (i.e.
High Court) lasting for six months and appealable at the appeal court lasting
for two months, totaling eight months. Judicial and procedural counting of
these starts 21 days after declaration of the results of the concerned polls.
Timeframe for exercising right of appeal if a party is dissatisfied with the
judgment of each hierarchy of the named electoral courts is 21 days from the
date of delivery of such judgment.
Constitutionally
speaking, by Section 239 (1) of the Nigeria’s 1999 Constitution, as amended in
2011, the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal (i.e. Court of Appeal) is
conferred with original jurisdiction to hear and determine legal disputes
arising from the conduct of presidential election within or in six months and
by Section 233 (2) (i) of the same Constitution, the case terminates at the
Supreme Court within or in two months.
By Section 285 (1) (a)
(b), the original jurisdiction concerning legal disputes associated with
Senatorial, House of Reps and State Assembly Polls is conferred on the
National/State Legislative Election Tribunal (i.e. High Court) to determine and
dispose of same within or in six months and by Section 246 (1) (b) and (3) of
the Constitution, the Court of Appeal is rested with final jurisdiction to be
determined and disposed of within or in two months. By Section 285 (2) of the
same Constitution, the original jurisdiction concerning the resolution of legal
disputes associated with the conduct of Governorship Poll is rested in the
Governorship Election Tribunal (i.e. High Court), to be determined and disposed
of within or in six months. By Section 246 (1) (c) of the referenced
Constitution, the appellate jurisdiction concerning resolution of same within
or in two months, is rested in the Court of Appeal; and by Section 233 (2)
(IV), the final determination of the apex appeal, within or in two months,
concerning governorship poll legal disputes is vested on the Supreme Court of
Nigeria.
We wish to further
inform Your Excellencies that the decisions
of the three hierarchies of the referenced electoral court (tribunal, appeal
and supreme courts) with respect to legal disputes arising from the conduct of
the referenced elections in Nigeria are constitutionally and mandatorily
enforceable in Nigeria by all authorities and persons holding judicial,
legislative and executive offices; to be enforced in all parts of the
Federation or any part thereof.
Specifically, by
Section 287 (1) of the Nigeria’s 1999 Constitution: “the decisions of the
Supreme Court of Nigeria are final and shall be enforced in any part of the
Federation by all authorities and persons, and by courts with subordinate
jurisdictions to that of the Supreme Court”. By Section 287 (2) of
the same Constitution: “the decisions of the Court of Appeal shall
be enforced in any part of the Federation by all authorities and persons and by
courts with subordinate jurisdictions to that of the Court of Appeal”. And
by Section 287 (3): “the decisions of the Federal High Court, a
(State and FCT) High Court; Governorship, National and State Assemblies
Election Petitions Tribunals (EPTs) and of all other courts established by this
Constitution shall be enforced in any part of the Federation by all authorities
and persons, and by other courts of law with subordinate jurisdictions to that
of the Federal High Court, a (State and FCT) High Court, EPTs and those other
courts, respectively.”
The analytical breakdown above, of Nigeria’s electoral
processes and code laws guiding them is to fully acquaint Your Excellencies with respect to same. With specific reference to
the National Assembly polls, in which elections were originally conducted into
469 federal legislative seats (109 senatorial seats and 360 house of reps seats)
by INEC since 28th of March 2015, the Commission has refused and
failed, as well, to conduct and conclude elections into six vacant senatorial
seats and nine vacant house of reps seats, among pockets of other vacant State
Assembly seats following judicial nullifications of their original elections
since December 2015. Following legal disputes associated with same, their
original elections were nullified by various divisions of the country’s Court
of Appeal at different dates in the month of December 2015 and judicial orders
were made for rerun elections into them to be conducted and concluded by INEC
within or in ninety-days. The judicial orders to that effect had expired since
March 2016 and the vacant seats have remained vacant till date.
The six vacant senatorial seats are those of Owerri
North (Okigwe) Senatorial District and Anambra Central Senatorial District in
Imo and Anambra States, Southeast Nigeria; Rivers West, Rivers South-East and
Rivers East Senatorial Districts in Rivers State, South-south Nigeria; and the
Kogi East Senatorial District in Kogi State, North-central Nigeria; while the
nine vacant house of reps seats are all in Rivers State, South-south Nigeria. The
affected population of the six vacant senatorial seats and nine vacant house of
reps or federal constituency seats is put at over 20million people. That is to
say that the referenced population and their senatorial districts and federal
constituencies have been denied legislative representation and political rights
to choose their leaders democratically since December 2015. In other words,
their areas have remained legislatively un-represented since December 2015.
Saddening, too, are INEC’s flagrant violation of the
Constitution and other laws of the land particularly the orders of the
appellate court directing it to conduct and conclude within or in ninety-days
the outstanding parliamentary polls under reference. In Rivers State, for
instance, two sets of ninety days court order for the conduct of rerun elections
into its three vacant senatorial seats were made by the Abuja Division of the
Court of Appeal on 10th and 11th of December 2015 and
they expired on 10th and 11th of March 2016. Another
ninety days court order given to INEC by the Abuja Division of the Court of Appeal,
to conduct and conclude rerun elections into the nine vacant house of reps
seats in the State, was made on 12th of December 2015 and it expired
on 12th of March 2016.
Yours
Faithfully,
For:
International Society for Civil Liberties & the Rule of Law (Intersociety)
Emeka Umeagbalasi,
Board Chairman
Mobile Line:
+2348174090052
Obianuju
Joy Igboeli, Esq., Head, Civil Liberties & Rule of Law Program
Mobile
Line: +2348180771506
Chinwe
Umeche, Esq., Head, Democracy & Good Governance Program
Mobile
Line: +2347013238673
Website:
www.intersociety-ng.org
Address: 41, Miss Elems Street, Fegge
Urban, Onitsha, Southeast Nigeria
CC:
1. Senate President, Senator
Abubakar Bukola Saraki
- Deputy Senate President, Senator Ike Ekweremadu
- Speaker of House of Reps, Hon Yakubu Dogara
- Chairman of INEC, Prof Mahmud Yakubu
- Attorney General of the Federation, Mr. Abubakar Malami, SAN
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