By Omonu YG Nelson
The recent judgment delivered by the Kogi State Governorship Election Tribunal has sparked widespread criticism and outrage, with many calling for urgent reform in the judiciary.
The tribunal, led by Justice Birnin Kudu, had dismissed the petition filed by the Social Democratic Party (SDP) governorship candidate, citing “insufficient evidence” of overvoting and electoral malpractice.
Isaiah Davies Ijele, Director of New Media for the SDP governorship campaign council, expressed dismay at the judgment, stating, “Nigeria’s judiciary system is our major problem… Something must be done urgently to salvage the judicial institution from the grip of corruption.”
Ijele further questioned the tribunal’s reliance on human witnesses over electronic evidence from the BVAS system, saying, “How can human witnesses be needed above Electronic BVAS that’s the main storage of the election data?”
He also alleged that the judges had refused to acknowledge the demonstration of BVAS, which was ordered by the court, and had instead chosen to disregard the outcome.
Ijele called on the international community to intervene, stating, “We must call the international community to save our democracy from the gangs of Judges destroying our nation.”
The SDP campaign council has rejected the judgment in its entirety and is demanding a thorough investigation into allegations of bribery and corruption.
As Ijele emphasized, “We refuse to be subjugated to the highest bidders association of Judges in our Judicial adjudication.”
