Supreme Court | Zikoko!

Notice: Function _load_textdomain_just_in_time was called incorrectly. Translation loading for the wordpress-seo domain was triggered too early. This is usually an indicator for some code in the plugin or theme running too early. Translations should be loaded at the init action or later. Please see Debugging in WordPress for more information. (This message was added in version 6.7.0.) in /home/bcm/src/dev/www/wp-includes/functions.php on line 6121
Supreme Court | Zikoko!

To the joy of many Nigerians, on March 3, 2023, the Supreme Court ruled that the old Naira notes should remain Nigeria’s legal tender till December 31, 2023.

Nigerians to Meffy

Despite the court ruling, it wasn’t until March 13, 2023, that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) released a statement directing commercial banks to the court. The statement also reaffirmed that the old Naira notes will remain the legal tender till December 31, 2023.

This hopefully marks the end of Nigeria’s long-drawn war with Naira scarcity. But, how did this problem start in the first place?

October 2022

On October 26, 2022, the CBN governor, Godwin “Meffy” Emefiele, announced plans to redesign the ₦200, ₦500 and ₦1000 notes. He also said they would begin circulating from December 15, 2022, and become the legal tender on January 31, 2023.

His reason for the Naira redesign was to implement a cashless economy, boost our economy and combat hoarding, terrorists and kidnappers.

November 2022

On November 23, 2023, President Buhari unveiled the new Naira notes at a state house meeting in Abuja. However, to the disappointment of many, it seemed like a waste of public funds as the new notes looked like they were simply passed through a Snapchat filter.

January 2023

January showed that although it was a new year, Nigeria had the same old problems. Because despite the announcement of the new notes being in circulation from December 15, many people were still yet to see them. Banks still gave out the old Naira over the counter, and it was like ATMs had no idea new banknotes existed.

The CBN launched a cash swap programme on January 23, 2023, across all local governments to allow for the easy exchange of old banknotes for new ones. Still, as the deadline inched closer, it became more and more evident that an extension would be needed. And Meffy finally decided to extend the deadline by ten days to February 10, 2023.

February 2023

Following this extension, Nigerians began to feel the full effect of the Naira scarcity; crowds at banks and queues at ATMs became the order of the day. People started sleeping at ATM galleries, and POS agents began to charge arms and legs as withdrawal charges.

As expected, tensions began to rise, and it wasn’t long before protests and pockets of violence started happening around the country. Banks were burnt, and the staff wasn’t spared; some had to jump fences to escape.

Zenith bank staff fleeing through the back fence. This is the situation APC put us in this country. Atiku, please come. pic.twitter.com/7cY21mrZJy
— Senator Dino Melaye. (SDM) (@_dinomelaye) February 6, 2023

On February 3, 2023, three states, Kaduna, Kogi and Zamfara, sued the federal government at the Supreme Court over implementing the new naira policy. On February 8, 2023, the Supreme Court adjourned the case to February 15, 2023, and banned the CBN from implementing the February 10 deadline.

Many Nigerians were hopeful that on February 15, 2023, the court would finally give a ruling that would stop the madness created by the Naira scarcity, but unfortunately, the court was adjourned again to February 22, 2023.

And on February 16, 2023, in what seemed like blatant disobedience to the Supreme Court’s order, President Buhari approved the continued use of just the old ₦200 notes till April 10, 2023. But this had little to no effect on the Naira scarcity problem as the old ₦200 banknotes comprised only 9.19 per cent of Nigeria’s currency volume.

When the D-Day finally came on February 22, 2023, much to many Nigerians’ chagrin, the court again adjourned the case for judgment on March 3, 2023.

Also read: What Has the Naira Scarcity Cost Nigerians?

March 2023

At this point, many Nigerians had resigned to never seeing the Naira banknotes again. However, it surprisingly ended in praise when on March 3, the Supreme Court legalised the old banknotes till December 31, 2023.

Meffy’s Naira redesign has been a bad dream for many Nigerians that we hopefully never see a repeat of.

Tolu Omotesho

March 14, 2023

Citizen

CBN, Meffy, Naira redesign, Supreme Court
On March 3, 2023, the Supreme Court ruled on the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) naira redesign policy. It noted how the president flouted its February 8 order asking the Central bank of Nigeria (CBN) not to end the recognition of old naira notes as legal tender and described it as a hallmark of a dictatorship.

Here are the words of Justice Emmanuel Agim, who read the lead judgement:

“The rule of law upon which our democratic governance is founded becomes illusory if the President of the country or any authority or person refuses to obey the orders of courts. The disobedience of orders of courts by the President in a constitutional democracy as ours is a sign of the constitution’s failure and that democratic governance has become a mere pretension and is now replaced by autocracy or dictatorship.”

[CBN governor Godwin Emefiele / Channels]

The Supreme Court ordered that the old ₦200, ₦500 and ₦1,000 notes should remain in circulation until December 31, 2023. This was a week ago. While some banks have started issuing the old notes, it’s unclear whether compliance is universal because cash is still scarce.

A CBN spokesperson recently said the old notes are now legal tender. Still, the CBN hasn’t issued an official statement, and the federal government has maintained an unusual silence.

Citizen spoke to some Nigerians to hear their thoughts on this issue. Here’s what they had to say.

Elizabeth

“I see the step taken by the CBN to reduce the naira in circulation to conform people to digital money as a welcome development. This is because many transactions and businesses have been bypassing taxes for years. This will help to audit most of their records properly.

“Also, I see it as a means to reduce corruption and undocumented payment. As a citizen and civil servant, it has helped me curb avoidable and unnecessary expenses. It has saved me from billing — the usual ‘drop something’ when you go to offices and other departments.

“I mainly use naira notes for transportation purposes (when I am not driving). It also helped me to review my expenses, especially when I go on market errands.

“Regarding the charges, I use non-traditional bank apps and cards to pay, so instead of paying charges, I earn interest for using their cards to make purchases.

“The CBN governor hasn’t said a thing about it because he is trying to salvage the policy, maybe looking for means and ways to make it work. The Supreme Court has given an order. Based on the verdict, I think the Supreme Court told the FG to return the old notes than telling the CBN. The president’s silence is obviously because he still supports the policy. As far as I’m concerned, I’m 70% ok with the naira scarcity.”

Layi

“Malls are packed because it seems it’s the way people can buy things via e-channels. You’ll find 30-minute queues at Spar and Shoprite. Cards are failing, so you have to transfer and wait. It’s been very time-consuming, which is ironic.

“Regarding the Supreme Court ruling, I’m not a lawyer, but I don’t think the ruling is useful per se. If it’s legal tender, people should accept it. No one will have confidence in the notes if the CBN says nothing.

“Also, the ruling makes it look like the court is in charge of the money supply — which is wrong. As you can see, the CBN can still frustrate the whole ruling by not circulating old notes, not printing more notes etc.

“It’s a cashless policy — that was clear from the start, and it’s another attempt to get Nigerians to dump cash. It wasn’t Buhari’s place to intervene in the matter in the first place but the CBN’s. Perhaps, the faulty implementation made him speak, but it didn’t concern him. If all went well, no one would need his input.

“You don’t call Buhari when banks hold your money, and you rarely call the CBN except you need a firmer hand to put your bank in check. So Buhari doesn’t have to say anything, and the CBN ideally still has control of the legal tender, so what do we do with the ruling? At best, banks accept the notes again, which can solve the problem. I can accept the notes if I know banks would accept them from me.”

ALSO READ: The CBN Is Launching Debit Cards. See Other Odd Stuff It’s Done

Ope

“The ruling has changed my purchasing experience. I now use Justrite Store more than I ever had. I only use cash for transport. The CBN won’t say anything till after the elections. They don’t need to since you can only spend the money if they release it. The policy has destroyed volumes of fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG). We are bleeding volumes massively.

“On Buhari, he can’t openly disobey the Supreme Court order, so I expect him to be mute.”

Bolaji

“For me, pardon my language; it’s pure BS. To even collect old notes from the banks is hard. To enter the bank, problem. I have failed POS transactions that they haven’t refunded. When I try to purchase stuff, sellers ask me to put ₦50 or ₦100 as an extra charge. What if what I want to buy is ₦400, and there’s ₦420 in my account? How do I wing it? I have to reduce whatever I want to purchase. It makes no sense.”

Victor

“The primary way this policy has affected me is to reduce my purchasing power. If I want to buy things like Suya or table water which the informal sector of the economy thrives on, I have to think twice because I don’t have an abundance of cash and transfers aren’t reliable. Who wants to wait for a Suya seller to confirm whether a ₦500 transaction has gone through?

“Everyone knows Godwin Emefiele is a yes man. At this point, the CBN doesn’t even have an opinion and is waiting on Buhari. Buhari himself appears confused. I think that’s why the CBN hasn’t said anything yet.

“Do I expect Buhari to speak on this issue? Yes, but not anytime soon because he has a lot on his plate with the controversies surrounding the conduct of the elections. He’s dealing with the transition as he’s tired of the office. The CBN is supposed to say something about it. When? I don’t know, maybe next week. That guy operates on vibes.”

Stephen Agwaibor

March 10, 2023

Citizen

CBN, Naira scarcity, Supreme Court
Much like Chinua Achebe’s most acclaimed novel, the state of Nigeria has truly begun to fall apart. This is due to the seemingly unending cash scarcity created by the CBN naira redesign policy.

Protests have erupted in various parts of the country. POS operators are now the new ballers in Nigeria, placing transaction charges as high as ₦4k on cash withdrawals. And even the lives of individuals have been cut short due to the inability to find cash for their daily needs.

Protesters burning an ATM fence in Benin, Edo State [Guardian Newspapers]

Here is how the government responded to this crisis so far:

The Federal High Court order

After the back and forth on a deadline for the expiration of ₦200, ₦500 and ₦1,000 notes, the CBN finally gave an extension. This was from January 31 to February 10.

But despite more time, the redesigned notes were still not available for use, as the February 10 deadline drew nearer. This made Nigerians question if the CBN would give a new deadline extension, or stand their ground.

Four days before the deadline, the answer came in the form of a restraining order from the Federal High Court to the CBN. The restraining order banned CBN and the Federal Government from trying to extend the February 10 deadline any further.

But just when Nigerians were getting used to this verdict, another ‘gbas gbos’ struck from the highest court in Nigeria — the Supreme Court.

The Supreme Court’s controversial judgement

On February 3, three frustrated governors from Kaduna, Kogi and Zamfara states, decided to drag the Federal Government before the Supreme Court. Their request? An injunction barring the CBN’s February 10 deadline on old naira notes as legal tender.

We imagine their faces look a lot like this

The Supreme Court gave a temporary order for CBN to halt the expiration of the old naira notes until the final judgement on February 15. This caused a lot of confusion as to whose order should be obeyed — the Federal High Court or Supreme Court.

However, when the day came, they adjourned the judgement instead to February 22. And even the temporary ruling did not ease the burden of naira scarcity in any way.

The Buhari plot twist

But less than 24 hours after the adjournment, President Muhammadu Buhari announced in a nationwide broadcast that the old ₦200 notes should be in circulation beyond February 10, while old N500 and N1000 notes should not be considered as legal tender. This completely disobeys the Supreme Court’s ruling of halting old naira note expiration.

After all, the president is meant to be the boss

But, is this legal? Does the President’s declaration supersede the highest court in the land? Citizen brought back constitutional lawyer, Festus Ogun, to give us context.

“Buhari is exhibiting executive rascality.”

For Festus, Buhari is on the wrong side of the law in regard to his declaration. According to Festus:

“I don’t understand why the President would disobey the highest court in the land. There is a reason why separation of powers exists, and there is nowhere in the constitution where a President’s order supersedes that of the Supreme Court.

He may decide to say that the Supreme Court case is between the Federal Government and the governors, but the Attorney-General of the Federation was called to represent the Federal Government. The Federal Government includes the Presidency, the CBN and all other authorities underneath it. As far as I’m concerned, he too is part of the Supreme Court trial. He has showcased the highest disrespect for the rule of law and exhibited executive rascality.”

But despite the February 16 declaration by Buhari, the naira scarcity continues to get werser with even more protests setting in. Would we hear from the Supreme Court on February 22? Would bringing back the old N200 note improve access to cash in Nigeria?

Only time can tell.

Chiamaka Dike

February 20, 2023

Citizen

Buhari, CBN, Naira notes, Naira scarcity, Nigeria, Supreme Court
A popular anonymous account on Twitter, now retired, had these words written on their bio: “This is Nigeria, anything you see you just have to take it like that.” Every passing day in Nigeria reinforces this quip.

The latest news is the Supreme Court has adjourned hearing on the status of the old and new naira notes. The case is a joint suit filed by ten states against the federal government. Today, February 15, 2023, was supposed to be the moment of truth after the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) said the deadline to turn in the old naira notes was February 10.

Instead, we’re back in limbo again. It’s aluta continua as the Supreme Court has adjourned the case to February 22, 2023. As it stands, we live to fight/die another day.

[newsletter type=”gov”]

So what happened?

According to Channels, the Supreme Court was filled with governors of Kaduna and Kogi, Nasir El-Rufai and Yahaya Bello, in attendance, along with other senior advocates of Nigeria.

Zamfara, Kogi and Kaduna filed the original suit against the FG. Other states joined in, including Niger, Kano, Ondo, Bayelsa, Edo, Lagos and Ekiti. You know it’s a serious matter when you can get El-Rufai away from campaign duties to be seated in court.

[Governors Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna State (left) and Yahaya Bello of Kogi State (right) at the Supreme Court on Wednesday. Credit: Ameh Ejekwonyilo]

Justice John Okoro led the seven-person panel. He said Nigerians shouldn’t “lose sight of the case and its intention as it affects the suffering of Nigerians” before adjourning the matter. This has left us hanging with regards to when, or if, our suffering would end.

In an earlier article, we asked if the Supreme Court could force the CBN to postpone its deadline. This adjournment shows the Supreme Court can do more than that. It can delay a ruling required to make the CBN postpone its deadline. A powerful reminder that it’s the Supreme Court’s world, and we’re all just living in it.

What could this mean for Nigerians?

Without mincing words, an adjournment of the ruling till February 22 — just three days shy of the general election, is ominous.

The current Naira scarcity is affecting trading, creating hardship, and causing protests across cities like Ibadan, Abeokuta, and Benin. It’s difficult to predict how this may force an election postponement or encourage low voter turnout on election day.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has already debunked rumours that the election will be postponed and insists it’ll proceed as planned.

FAKE NEWS ALERT
Our attention has been drawn to a fake report circulating on the social media with the title: “INEC May Postpone Feb 25 Election by a week or two”

The Commission will not and is not contemplating postponing the 2023 General Election. Nigerians should disregard it pic.twitter.com/KcTlhpcSEn
— INEC Nigeria (@inecnigeria) February 13, 2023

For others, it’s uncertainty in financial transactions as people do not know if old notes are legal tender across the board until the Supreme Court gives a verdict.

Once again, we wait to see how things play out. But as you do, don’t forget those poignant words from earlier, “this is Nigeria, anything you see you just have to take it like that.”

Join the Citizen Situation Room and Helpline on WhatsApp today to get real-time gist and drama on the 2023 elections.

Stephen Agwaibor

February 15, 2023

Citizen

adjournment, new naira notes, Supreme Court
Wait First is a flagship founded on a simple premise — everybody lies. Humans are lied to between 10-200 times a day while we tell one to two within the same period. And it’s so, so easy to do. All that’s needed is some burnt dodo stepped down with cold zobo, and breakfast is served.

While a lie’s a lie, all lies are not of equal standing. I mean, who hasn’t told a lie to get out of an awkward situation? Let’s see your hands. No hands? Figured.

On a larger scale, particularly during an election season like we’re in now, many people make claims which turn out false. Sometimes it’s unintentional. Sometimes they are deliberate. Unfortunately, social media is an amplifier, and fake news travels halfway around the world before facts wake up.

If it wasn’t already obvious, fake news is bad because it can spread wide-scale panic, which can cause harm and undermine the democratic process.

Fake news comes in various formats like fabrication, manipulation, advertising and propaganda. The European Parliamentary Research Service, classifies fake news into three categories.

Mal-information: Information that’s based on reality, used to inflict harm on a person, organisation or country.

Dis-information: Information that’s false and deliberately created to harm a person, social group, organisation or country.

Mis-information: Information that’s false but not created to cause harm.

For today’s launch of Wait First, we’ll look at recent claims that have made the rounds to check just how true, false or misleading they are.

A true claim is fresh banana, an outrightly false claim is burnt dodo while a misleading one is cold zobo.

Are Votes in Anambra the Size of an LG in Kaduna?

On January 2, 2023, the governor of Kaduna state, Nasir El-Rufai made an interesting claim in a TV interview. He was speaking on the chances of Peter Obi, the presidential candidate of the Labour Party. El-Rufai said Obi was polling poorly and couldn’t win.

He claimed, “The number of votes in Anambra is the size of one local government in Kaduna state. So all states are not equal.”

The good people at the Centre for Democracy and Development West Africa (CDD) fact-checked this claim. Here’s what they found.

“The evidence does not support El-Rufai’s position. As of February 6, 2023, INEC had not released the breakdown of registered voters per local government area.

However, the total number of registered voters in Anambra state is more than the total number of registered voters in the most populous local governments in Kaduna.

“By Kaduna’s own data, published by the Kaduna State Independent Electoral Commissioner (KADSIEC) in 2019, the local government with the highest number of registered voters is Kaduna South, which had 361,357 registered voters.

“The number of registered voters in Anambra state is more than that of the most populous LGAs in Kaduna. According to the National Population Commission (NPC), the most populous LGAs in Kaduna are Igabi, Kaduna South, and Zaria.

“These highly-populated LGAs in Kaduna have less than 700,000 people each, less than the 2,656,437 eligible voters in Anambra.”

Verdict: El-Rufai’s claim is false and therefore burnt dodo.

Did the Supreme Court give a unanimous judgment in the Lawan vs Machina case?

On February 6, 2023, Channels TV political correspondent Seun Okinbaloye broke the news that the Supreme Court ruled unanimously in favour of Senate President Ahmed Lawan. The long-drawn legal battle between Lawan and Bashir Machina was over who the rightful senatorial candidate representing Yobe north is.

Okinbaloye tweeted,” Senate President Ahmed Lawan is back on the ballot after (an) intense legal battle with Mr Bashir Machina. Machina lost to Lawan at the Supreme Court in a unanimous judgment in the contest for the ticket of the party as Yobe North Senatorial Candidate.”

So what’s the verdict on this claim?

While it’s true the Supreme Court ruled in favour of Lawan, the verdict was not unanimous. The Supreme Court had five justices rule on the matter and came to a split decision. They ruled 3-2 in favour of Lawan. This claim by Uncle Seun is, therefore, cold zobo.

Join the Citizen Situation Room and Helpline on WhatsApp today, to get real-time gist and drama on the 2023 elections.

You should also sign up for our Game of Votes newsletter. We help you make sense of news jargon and keep you up-to-date, especially with election news. Make the subscription of a lifetime here.

Stephen Agwaibor

February 11, 2023

Citizen, Wait First!

Anambra, El Rufai, Kaduna, Seun Okinbaloye, Supreme Court
For a Nigerian currently living in Nigeria, holding new naira notes is as difficult as finding an oasis in the Sahara desert.

This is because of CBN’s expiration date on the old N200, N500 and N1,000 to be implemented on February 10. So far, there has been a scarcity of the new naira notes in circulation which has caused mobile banking app downtimes and even a ‘naira to naira’ exchange rate from POS operators.

However, on February 8, a temporary injunction from the Supreme Court of Nigeria changed everything — CBN should halt the February 10 deadline for the expiration of old N200, N500 and N1,000 notes, respectively.

This left Nigerians with a lot of mixed emotions on social media, with some jubilating, while others heavily criticised the order and even later had a protest at CBN headquarters.

But, how did the matter go all the way to the Supreme Court? Is the Supreme Court ruling legal or not? What should we expect next?

Let’s dive a little bit into the backstory.

How did the matter reach the Supreme Court?

On February 3, three frustrated governors from Kaduna, Kogi and Zamfara states, decided to drag the Federal Government before the Supreme Court. Their request? An injunction barring the CBN’s February 10 deadline on old naira notes as legal tender.

We imagine their faces look a lot like this

This request means serious trouble, as the Supreme Court is the highest court in Nigeria. Any decision that is made in this court is final.

In other words, if the Supreme Court is against the CBN’s deadline order, who is CBN to object?

This happened after a Federal High Court in Abuja decided to side with CBN’s deadline and ordered that no one, not even President Muhammadu Buhari, the CBN or local banks should change the deadline.

The High Court to CBN, Buhari and commercial banks

But which direction will Nigeria face? High court and CBN or Supreme Court?

Supreme court vs federal high court: who’s the winner?

Before we decide who wins this fight, it’s important to note that the Supreme Court’s decision right now is not final. This is because the injunction was given under an ex-parte motion (i.e with only one party involved (the governors)).

The Federal Government is to come together and a final judgement is to be given on February 15.

Now to get back to our important question – whose ruling shall we believe?

The side of the Supreme Court?

In an interview with Channels Television, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Mike Ozekhome, maintained that the Supreme Court is the highest court in the land and that other lower courts “blow muted trumpets” when the matter is taken to the Supreme Court.

In his words, “Notwithstanding the fact that a high court or Federal High Court had granted an order telling the CBN, ‘You can stop this naira swap policy on February 10 as you have decided to do,’ the Supreme Court today said, ‘Hello? Don’t do that!” he said.

He also explained that the apex court’s judgement allows the old and new naira to be in the same position. He called this status quo ante bellum, which according to him means “the state of affairs before the crisis broke out.”

According to Ozekhome, “[The Supreme Court says] ‘Allow it to continue. Come back on February 15 and let us hear you people,’” he added.

Or the side of the Federal High Court?

To get another perspective on the situation, Citizen contacted human rights and constitutional lawyer, Festus Ogun.

For Festus, even though the Supreme Court may want to use the law of original jurisdiction in Section 232 of the 1999 constitution (a law that allows interference from the Supreme Court when a dispute is between states and the nation), the CBN is an independent body outside the Federal government. Therefore, the ruling is not even legal.

According to Festus, “By Section 232 of the 1999 Constitution, the Supreme Court can only activate its original jurisdiction when a dispute arises between the Federation and States or between states. The current dispute is clearly not one between the Federation and States. The CBN is an independent agency of the Federal Government. Any dispute relating to its monetary policies cannot be mistaken for a dispute involving the “Federation”.

He also added that the Supreme Court can only entertain issues involving CBN when the subject matter is an appeal arising from the decision of the lower courts.

This means that the only way the governors can legally get the Supreme Court “big boys” on their side is to beg or appeal the Federal High Court’s (the lower court) ruling.

What is the way forward on CBN’s deadline extension?

On the side of the Supreme Court, Nigerians have no choice but to wait it out. This is until both the governors and the Federal Government meet in court until February 15.

But when asked by Festus, he said that if one approaches the Federal High Court and sues Buhari, CBN, Godwin Emefiele (CBN Governor) and the Attorney-General of the Federation, then the deadline could be extended based on a breach of Section 20 of the 2007 CBN Act.

According to Festus, “If carefully litigated, I think the law, as far as I know, and practice it, supports an extension. The timeframe given by the CBN, with the greatest respect, is not reasonable as required by Section 20 of the CBN Act. [This section] says the deadline must be reasonable. What is reasonable is always a question of fact. So, it is desirable for the court to really determine if the CBN timeframe and deadline are reasonable.”

What would be the final judgement of the Supreme Court after February 15? Will the High Court use the constitution to get its way? Would Nigerians come out of the palaver that is the scarcity of the new naira notes?

Well, we have no choice but to wait and see.

The Citizen Situation Room and Helpline are your ultimate plugs for real-time gist and drama on the 2023 elections. Join the conversation today!

You should also sign up for our Game of Votes newsletter. We help you make sense of news jargon and keep you up-to-date, especially with election news. Make the subscription of a lifetime here.

Chiamaka Dike

February 9, 2023

Citizen

CBN, new naira notes, Nigeria, Supreme Court
On February 6, 2023, the Supreme Court stunned Nigerians when it ruled that Ahmed Lawan was the All Progressives Congress (APC) senatorial candidate for Yobe north instead of Bashir Machina.

[Senate President, Ahmed Lawan. Daily Trust]

This was shocking because Machina had won APC’s ticket at a primary where Lawan was absent. A High Court and Court of Appeal upheld the victory. But the Supreme Court has dashed Machina’s hopes at the 2023 polls.

There were divided opinions on the issue on social media, and even we couldn’t make much sense of it, so we spoke to a couple of experts who provided insight.

Franklin Ofodeme, Lawyer

“Machina lost today mainly on the grounds of technicality. The Supreme Court believes that Machina’s suit at the federal high court ought to have commenced using a writ of summons. However, Machina used originating summons. It’s that simple.

“When you commence an action using originating summons, you’re merely asking the court to interpret a question of law. But when there are allegations of fact, you initiate the suit using the writ of summons so that you can call witnesses to prove your case.

“So, on technical grounds, Machina lost because the suit that gave rise to the appeal at the Supreme Court was commenced using the wrong originating process.”

[Bashir Machina. The Guardian Nigeria]

Festus Ogun, Constitutional Lawyer

“I’m surprised by the judgment of the Supreme Court. Interestingly, the decision was a split one, 3-2. Three justices of the apex court judged that the Senate President, Ahmed Lawan, is the rightful candidate of the APC. Two other justices based their judgment on the fact that the election that produced Lawan was illegal and was conducted in violation of the Electoral Act 2022.

“From the information publicly available, the basis of the majority decision of the Supreme Court was that the matter commenced by originating summons. Given that there were allegations of fraud by Bashir Machina, they ruled that they should have started with a writ of summons.

“In my respectful opinion, I don’t subscribe to that view. The simple reason being that the matter before the court was an issue relating to the interpretation of the Electoral Act and whether APC’s action in submitting the name of another candidate — after it had conducted a primary election earlier where Machina emerged as a candidate — is valid in the eyes of the law.

“It’s expected that issues of fact will arise. They can be resolved using affidavit evidence, as far as I know. Interestingly, the federal high court pre-election practice direction 2022 by virtue of section 4, subsection 1, states that pre-election matters should be instituted by originating summons. The Supreme Court is saying the lawyers shouldn’t have initiated the action by originating summons but by a writ of summons.

[Supreme Court of Nigeria, Abuja. BusinessDay]

“He (Lawan) didn’t participate in the earlier election. He withdrew his candidacy from the primary election conducted in May in pursuit of an ill-fated presidential ambition. If another election was conducted after a validly nominated candidate had emerged, then there isn’t much to be substantiated, even with an originating summons which requires the calling of witnesses.

“Tall and short, I align myself with the view of the (two) dissenting justices of the Supreme Court. For me, theirs represents the actual position of the law. But then, all I’m saying is academic because, under the law, the majority decision of the Supreme Court represents the true position of the law. There’s nothing we can do about it.

[Chief Justice of Nigeria, Olukayode Ariwoola. Premium Times]

“As a people, we must understand that equity follows the law. Equity won’t look at the form but the substance of the matter. The majority decision of the Supreme Court, which puts form over substance, adheres to a barren technicality.

“Beyond this judgment, many people have lost faith in our justice system. Because it’s porous, slow and largely inefficient — this is without prejudice to the Supreme Court ruling. Many of our people no longer see the judiciary as the last hope of the ordinary person. This is why some of us have advocated that we must fix the rot in our justice system for our country to move forward.

“The elite in this country make our laws. They find a way to get away with things and don’t, in the real sense of things, respect the law. They know that the inefficiencies in our laws are fertile enough for them to get around it, and they have the resources to get the best lawyers to manoeuvre their way.

“I’ve read the Electoral Act, which is good legislation. I’ve written a lot about it. However, this judgment relating to Ahmed Lawan and Bashir Machina is a bad precedent. We must refrain from taking technicality over substantial justice. That’s the way I see it.”

Verdict

Machina lost his position because of a mistake his lawyers made. However, the Supreme Court’s position remains controversial, although it is the biggest court in Nigeria and, thus, binding.

Have you signed up for our Game of Votes newsletter yet? We help you make sense of news jargon and keep you up-to-date, especially with election news. Make the subscription of a lifetime here.

Stephen Agwaibor

February 7, 2023

Citizen

Ahmad Lawan, Bashir Machina, Supreme Court
Just weeks to the 2019 general elections, the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Walter Onnoghen, was removed from office over corruption allegations he was later convicted for.

Now, three months to the 2023 general elections, the current CJN, Olukayode Ariwoola, is sweating because some Nigerians are asking him to step down from office. But it has nothing to do with corruption this time.

The CJN must resign.
— Emma ik Umeh (Tcee )🇳🇬 (@emmaikumeh) November 25, 2022

What did the CJN do?

VIDEO: I'm happy Makinde is part of Integrity Group, says CJN pic.twitter.com/NUMdo5bn8L
— TheCable (@thecableng) November 26, 2022

While speaking at a state banquet hosted in his honour by the Rivers State governor, Nyesom Wike, on November 24, 2022, the CJN praised the Integrity Group of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) known as the G5.

He said, “I’m happy my own governor is among them because he’ll try to imitate his friend and in-law (Wike).”

For context, the CJN is from Oyo State and the governor he’s referring to is his state governor, Seyi Makinde.

How are Nigerians reacting?

The PDP already has enough on its plate especially with the G5’s troublemaking. Evidently, the party is pouring out its frustrations on Ariwoola. The party issued a strongly worded statement and warned the CJN to stop undermining the integrity of the judiciary. The PDP said his action is unacceptable and basically told him to keep shut about politics.

The Supreme Court tried to control the damage by claiming the CJN didn’t say what everyone saw in the video and was only making a joke during other remarks. We saw that video, and the CJN is definitely not Basketmouth.

Why does this matter?

The PDP seems to be the only ones up in arms about the CJN’s remarks. The party’s concern is understandable because the CJN isn’t expected to hold partisan views for obvious reasons.

The results of presidential elections usually end up at the Supreme Court for final judgement. The PDP doesn’t want to face a biased referee. Although the PDP’s demand for the CJN’s resignation is a pipe dream, this episode will be revisited if the result of the 2023 presidential election ends up on his table.

ALSO READ: Who Are the PDP G5 Blocking Atiku’s Presidential Ambition?

Stephen Agwaibor

November 29, 2022

Citizen

Ariwoola, Chief Justice, CJN, pdp, Supreme Court
The executive, legislative and judicial arms of government are the essential pillars of a democracy. They’re as important to democracy as firewood is to making firewood jollof rice.

All three arms perform different functions to ensure that the country continues to run smoothly and without one suppressing the others.

And while the elected executives and members of the legislature are the rockstars of governance in Nigeria, the judicial arm is the introvert who usually operates away from the limelight. But the judiciary is just as pivotal to maintaining a nation’s balance. And at the top of that arm of government is the Supreme Court.

What’s the Supreme Court?

The court is the highest-ranking court in Nigeria, just like in other countries. It’s the King of Boys without the violence and bloodshed.

This is the court that has jurisdiction in any dispute between the Federation and a state or between states, according to the 1999 constitution. When two elephants fight, the Supreme Court is there to determine the winner.

“The best jollof is firewood jollof and that’s final!” – Supreme Court, maybe

The court answers questions on the law in civil and criminal proceedings brought before it and makes decisions on constitutional disputes.

Such cases first have to pass through the lower courts and the Court of Appeal before landing on the Supreme Court’s table.

ALSO READ: Supreme Court Tells Buhari to Drink Executive Order 10 And Mind His Business

Composition of the Supreme Court

The Supreme Court consists of a maximum of 21 justices with a Chief Justice as the head.

How does one become a justice?

A Supreme Court justice must have been a legal practitioner in Nigeria for at least 15 years before they can serve at the court.

They also have to retire at the age of 70, but there have been attempts to extend the retirement age. Countries like the United States don’t have a retirement age for Supreme Court justices.

In which case, it’s a “till death do us part” marriage

Justices are nominated

Unlike how members of the executive and legislature get into office through periodic elections, the elevation of Supreme Court justices runs through the other two arms of government.

When the president appoints a Supreme Court justice, after consultation with the National Judicial Council (NJC), the Senate has to confirm such an appointment.

The Supreme Court is… supreme

No other court in Nigeria can overturn the decisions of the Supreme Court. It’s why many people regard it as the last hope of the common man, especially when it rules on constitutional matters.

The court makes rulings that can have a real impact on the lives of Nigerians. And justices do this job without all the attention that comes with being an executive or member of the legislature.

Can justices be sacked?

The constitution frowns on the removal of judicial officers except in specific cases when they’re incapable of discharging their duties due to illness or misconduct. Even when that happens, the president can’t sack them without the approval of a two-thirds majority of the Senate.

Bonus fact

The Nigerian Supreme Court has only ever had one female Chief Justice: Aloma Mariam Mukh t ar who served between 2012 and 2014.

ALSO READ: Why Nigeria’s Supreme Court Has a New Chief Justice

Samson Toromade

August 9, 2022

Citizen

Nigeria, Supreme Court
When President Muhammadu Buhari signed Executive Order 10 two years ago, it was with the best of intentions.

There is no precise judicial definition of what an executive order is but think of it as a wuru wuru to the answer kind of legislation. It allows a president to issue a directive without going through the painful process of begging the National Assembly for approval.

“Serve me 10 cups of executive orders, please.”

What is Executive Order 10?

Money makes the world go round, and this is especially true for Nigerian politics.

The key goal of Buhari’s Executive Order 10 was to enforce the financial independence of the state legislature and judiciary whose purse strings are controlled by their governors.

The process currently works in such a way that governors receive allocations for these arms from the Federation Account, but have the final say on what they can let them have.

It’s essentially a parent-child relationship that allows the governors maintain some undue influence on important arms of government that are supposed to be independent and even check them.

If you relied on your parents for weekly allowance, how likely are you to obey their unfair 5 pm curfew order? And would they even take you seriously when you tell them 9 am is too early to be drinking alcohol?

“Hennessy 250

“Ko ma lo ni titi”

This is how state executives currently relate with the legislature and judiciary, but remember that they are supposed to be siblings with equal amount of independence.

Enter ~~the dragon~~ Buhari

Section 121(3) of the 1999 constitution (as amended) stipulates that the amount credited to the judiciary should be paid directly to the heads of courts.

But the governors said, “What is a constitution?” and continue, to this day, to control the tap and do as they wish.

“Economy is hard. Just manage this for now.”

Buhari used Executive Order 10 to empower the Accountant-General of the Federation to deduct directly from the Federation Account the allocations made to any state that fails to release funds meant for its legislature and judiciary.

Governors are sugar daddies to their state legislative and judicial arms, but Buhari’s order established the Federal Government as the alpha sugar daddy.

Pushing his luck further, Buhari said in Executive Order 10 that State Governments must set up committees to determine a workable budget for each arm of the government.

This would be based on the needs communicated by the accounting officers of those arms.

State Judiciary Budget Committees were also to be created to prepare, administer and implement the budgets that meet the needs of the judicial arms.

You say?

Predictably, governors were pissed at Buhari’s meddling into their affairs and told him to sit down in one place.

They said his order was unnecessary and unconstitutional and hinted he doesn’t understand the interpretation of Section 121(3) of the constitution he was using to justify Executive Order 10.

The order was supposed to take effect on May 20, 2020, but a back-and-forth between the governors and the Buhari administration delayed that until a case was filed at the Supreme Court.

A judgement delivered on February 11, 2022 agreed with the governors and established that Buhari was overstepping the limit of his constitutional powers.

Six of the seven-member panel of judges said the Federal Government has no right to tell State Governments how to run their households if there’s no clear constitutional backing.

Justice Uwani Abba-Aji, the only judge who disagreed with the verdict, rebuked the governors for the ‘hanky-panky’ methods they have employed to deny financial independence to their judicial arms.

He noted that Buhari’s Executive Order 10 would have corrected the constitutional wrong being done by the governors.

We imagine Justice Abba-Aji gave his minority verdict like this:

Who won?

Executive orders are not clearly defined in the 1999 constitution, but the Buhari administration has signed 10 of them, after the three presidents before him since 1999 signed a combined total of zero.

Even though they allow presidents to skirt legislative review, they still need to not clash with the constitution.

It is a deliberate mechanism to make sure democratic leaders do not become dictators.

State judiciary and legislature are indeed living in the bondage of their all-powerful ~~sugar daddies~~ governors, but it appears Executive Order 10 won’t be their way out.

Samson Toromade

February 13, 2022

Citizen

Buhari, Executive Order 10, Supreme Court