Federal High Court stops INEC from ending voter registration

-

 







By our correspondent



The Federal High Court in Abuja, presided over by Justice Mobolaji Olajuwon (Court 10),  Monday, granted an order of interim injunction,  stopping the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from ending voter registration on June 30, 2022, following the hearing of an argument on motion exparte by Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project.


SERAP and 185 concerned Nigerians had filed the lawsuit against INEC asking the court to “declare unconstitutional, illegal, and incompatible with international standards the failure of the electoral body to extend the deadline for voter registration to allow eligible Nigerians to exercise their rights.”


In the suit, SERAP had asked the court for “an order restraining INEC, its agents, privies, assigns, or any other person(s) claiming through it from discontinuing the continuous voters’ registration exercise from the 30th June 2022 or any other date pending the hearing and determination of the motion on notice.”


The suit was adjourned to 29th June, 2022 for the hearing of the Motion on Notice for interlocutory injunction.


The suit followed the decision by INEC to extend the deadline for the conduct of primaries by political parties by six days, from June 3 to June 9. But the commission failed to also extend the online pre-registration which ended May 30 2022 and the Continuous Voter Registration ending June 30, 2022.


In the suit number FHC/L/CS/1034/2022 filed at the Federal High Court, Lagos, and transferred to Abuja, SERAP is asking the court to determine “whether the failure of INEC to extend the deadline for voter registration is not a violation of Nigerian Constitution, 1999 [as amended], the Electoral Act, and international standards.”


According SERAP, this pursuant to the fact that  “The Nigerian Constitution 1999 (as amended) provides in Section 14(1)(c) that, ‘the participation by the people in their government shall be ensured in accordance with the provisions of this Constitution’.


“Section 9(6) of the Electoral Act 2022 also provides that ‘the registration of voters, updating and revision of the Register of Voters under this section shall not stop not later than 90 days before any election covered by this Act’.


“Similarly, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, and the African Charter on Democracy, Elections and Governance guarantee the right to political participation.


“These human rights treaties also require states parties including Nigeria to ensure the independence and impartiality of national electoral bodies responsible for the management of elections, as well as to promote the establishment of the necessary conditions to foster citizen participation.


“The right of people to participate in their government is a fundamental feature of any democratic society, and any undue restriction of the right would strike at the heart of representative government.”






Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

War at NASS amid Akapbio impeachment as DSS takes over

-
Image
                              Akpabio The premises of the national assembly appears like a war zone this morning as men of the Department of State Security (DSS) have taken over amidst speculations of an impeachment move against Sen. Akpabio  Operatives of the DSS have taken control of the national assembly amid allegations of a potential impeachment threat against Senate President, Goodswill Akpabio. Speculations have swirled that some aggrieved northern senators, allegedly dissatisfied with President Bola Tinubu, are reportedly reviving an earlier attempt to remove Akpabio from office. Globally, parliaments have dedicated internal security personnel responsible for maintaining order and safety within and around the premises of parliament. Other security agencies attached to the parliament are present to ensure the safety of lives and property in the event of any security breach or threats that might disrup...
Read more

No sit-at-home in South-East on Tuesday – Ekpa insists

-
Image
 (By thenewsguru.com) The Prime Minister of the Biafra Republic Government in Exile, Simon Ekpa, has clarified that there will be no sit-at-home on Tuesday, October 22, 2024, in the Southeast region. In a statement issued Monday through his official Twitter handle, Ekpa emphasized that only Monday’s sit-at-home was observed to demand the release of Nnamdi Kanu, the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), and to push for the delegitimization of Nigeria’s authority in the Biafran territory. At CHISCO TRANSPORT, every journey is safe  Ekpa made the clarification in response to circulating claims suggesting that a sit-at-home would also occur on Tuesday. He reiterated that no such directive has been issued for that day. He further noted that he would address Biafrans live on his platform to explain the decision. “Ekpa has cleared the air on the rumored sit-at-home, and he promised to go live on X Space to inform Biafrans that there is no sit-at-home tomorrow,” he said. I...
Read more

United States grand jury indicts Nigerian Catholic priest on three felony sexual assault charges

-
Image
  Anthony Odiong is accused of sexual assault by at least eight women whom the priest had been counseling Ramon Antonio Vargas The criminal case that authorities are building against a Roman Catholic priest accused of preying on women whom he met while working in south-east Louisiana and Texas is progressing, with a grand jury in the latter state indicting him on three felony sexual assault charges. Anthony Odiong, 55, faces two counts of second-degree sexual assault as well as one of first-degree sexual assault in the charges handed up against him recently in the McLennan county, Texas, state court. The charges against Odiong – who was first arrested in July – involve two women. He could receive up to life imprisonment if convicted of the first-degree charge, a stiffer penalty that stems from the fact that the alleged victim in the case was a woman whom Odiong was prohibited from “marrying or purporting to marry” under Texas law. The second-degree counts each carry up to 20 years ...
Read more