Robert Clarke, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, has pointed to the 1999 Constitution as the root cause of the persistent electoral disputes that have plagued the country over the years. He firmly stated that these electoral issues will continue until the law undergoes necessary amendments.
Clarke, who appeared as a guest on Thursday’s edition of Channels Television’s “Politics Today,” expressed his concern over the extensive authority vested in the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) by the 1999 Constitution.
The senior lawyer’s remarks come in the wake of a Supreme Court judgment affirming the election of President Bola Tinubu. This decision, he believes, serves as yet another illustration of the ongoing legal battles stemming from the existing legal framework.
“The problem today is that the system we have, except it is rigorously looked into, we will continue for every four years to do the same thing we are doing for the next 20 years. I started with this constitution in 1999; today, in 2023, there has been no difference. Every four years, we do a roundabout in trekking and come to the same point,” Clarke said.
“We have done about six election petitions and the Supreme Court has never set aside any presidential election in Nigeria. Why should they, when the law says whatever the umpire does is by law presumed to be right?
“So, once the umpire which is INEC presents documents to the tribunal and says ‘I have done my job, these are the results, if you are not happy come and challenge me and bring your own result’.
“That is what is happening. We have to make sure INEC is not given that advantage to present document and the court has no option than accept them as correct.”
“For us not to come back in four years’ time to come and be talking the same thing that we are doing today, we must amend the 1999 Constitution to remove that section that says to be able to contest an election you must belong to a political party,” the senior lawyer added.
According to Clarke, the current array of problems primarily stems from the actions of political parties, which engage in a multitude of legal battles encompassing pre-election, election, and post-election phases.
In reference to the recent appeals filed by Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Peter Obi of the Labour Party (LP) against Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) at the Supreme Court, Clarke placed responsibility on the lawyers representing the litigants.
He suggested that a different outcome might have been achieved had the legal teams pursued alternative strategies.
The Supreme Court’s decision affirmed the ruling of the Presidential Election Petitions Tribunal from September 6, 2023, which validated Bola Tinubu’s victory.
A seven-judge panel, led by Justice John Iyang Okoro, declared that the opposition appeals, which revolved around allegations of fraud, electoral law violations, and Tinubu’s eligibility to run for the presidency, lacked merit.