The Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekun, on Monday warned politicians, legal professionals, public officers and social media customers in opposition to turning the courtroom into “an extension of the political arena”.
The CJN spoke on the inauguration of judges nominated for the 2027 Election Petition Tribunals in Abuja.
She stated political events, candidates and supporters should recognise that “the judicial process is not a continuation of the electoral campaign by other means.”
She stated lawful orders should be complied with and so they should additionally chorus from actions calculated to intimidate judicial officers.
She stated public opinion and a candidate’s reputation “cannot be substituted for legal proof”, insisting that disputes should be selected pleadings, proof and legislation.
She urged public officers and influential figures to chorus from commenting on pending issues, warning that makes an attempt to prejudge outcomes can create pointless rigidity.
On social media, she stated residents could categorical their views, however unverified allegations, selective accounts of proceedings and on-line campaigns in opposition to judicial officers distort public understanding.
“Misinformation, intimidation and attempts to prejudice pending proceedings have no place in a society governed by the rule of law,” she stated, urging the media to train care as effectively.
The CJN condemned the submitting of a number of actions or appeals on the identical subject material, the pursuit of conflicting orders from courts of coordinate jurisdiction, and using ex parte purposes to achieve tactical benefit.
Such practices, she stated, “can bring the administration of justice into disrepute.” Counsel, she added, should resist the temptation to make the judicial course of “another instrument of political contest.”
The President of the Court of Appeal, Justice Monica Dongban-Mensem, disclosed that 375 judicial officers have been nominated to serve on the tribunals. Of these, 138 are returning members with earlier tribunal expertise, whereas 237 are newly nominated.
In her welcome deal with, Justice Dongban-Mensem urged tribunal members to withstand “every attempt at improper influence, whether through political pressure, inducement, intimidation, personal relationships or other considerations extraneous to the administration of justice.”
No particular person, “however highly placed”, she stated, ought to be allowed to compromise the independence of their courts.
She stated the nominations adopted consultations with Heads of Courts and the NBA, and described the appointment as “a call to service, not privilege.”
On case administration, she directed that pointless adjournments be discouraged, with purposes weighed in opposition to the pursuits of justice and statutory timelines. “Expedition must never undermine fairness,” she stated, “just as procedural indulgence must not frustrate timely adjudication.”
She famous that tribunal choices could also be appealed to the Court of Appeal and, ultimately, the Supreme Court, making the standard of adjudication on the tribunal stage elementary.
The Court of Appeal, she stated, has developed a centralised Case Management System for scanning, importing and storing judicial choices.
The Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, SAN, urged the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) to concern a code of conduct for legal professionals dealing with election circumstances.
Delivering his goodwill message on the occasion, the AGF described the Electoral Act 2026 as introducing far-reaching reforms that recalibrate the electoral framework forward of the polls, including that their influence will depend upon enforcement by INEC, compliance by events and judicial interpretation.
He instructed the judges to stay free from intimidation, inducement or extraneous concerns, warning that an faulty determination “may take another four years to correct.”
He additionally steered a number of tribunal panels in jurisdictions with excessive petition volumes, notably for legislative elections, and urged cautious collection of Court Registrars, saying an inexperienced registrar can hamper proceedings “however competent the panel may be.”
The Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Joash Amupitan, SAN, warned that AI-generated deepfakes and disputes over digital outcome transmission might threaten political stability.
He described the tribunals as “the constitutional valve that releases political pressure and prevents electoral friction from devolving into civil disruption.”
He singled out Section 60(3) of the Electoral Act 2026, which offers with digital transmission of polling-unit outcomes and the authorized impact of communication failures, saying its interpretation “may feature prominently in future petitions.”
He warned of three digital threats: AI-generated messages impersonating officers to announce false polling unit relocations, deepfakes launched throughout the pre-election broadcast blackout, and cloned movies of Returning Officers falsely declaring outcomes.
Genuine proof is also dismissed as pretend, a phenomenon he known as the “Liar’s Dividend.” He urged tribunals to insist on digital provenance and forensic chain of custody beneath Section 84 of the Evidence Act.
He added that engagement between INEC and the judiciary “is not an avenue to influence judicial decisions or discuss the merits of pending proceedings.”
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