The pan-Yoruba socio-political organisation, Afenifere, has called for caution by those who, hiding under the guise of freedom of expression, tend to engage in incitement bordering on both treason and contempt of the court.
The admonition was contained in a statement signed by the organisation’s National Publicity Secretary, Jare Ajayi, while reacting to a statement credited to a factional Secretary-General of Ohanaeze, Okechukwu Isiguzoro, in which he was pre-empting the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal handling the cases that arose from February 25, 2023 presidential election.
Recall that Ohanaeze Ndigbo, in a press statement issued on Tuesday, August 4, 2023, insinuated that the type of military situation that occurred in neighbouring Niger Republic in July this year might happen in Nigeria if “the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal (PEPT) judges ‘came up with “an erroneous judgement”.
Reacting to this, Afenifere asserted that apart from constituting an intimidation of the judiciary, this statement is also inciting as “everyone knows that the only means of changing government known to law is through the ballot box. This is not just a constitutional provision in Nigeria, it is also the norm in all countries that hold the right of the people to determine who govern them as sacrosanct”.
According to the statement, Afenifere considered the aspect of Isiguzoro’s statement on FCT status in regard to election results as sub-judice, in view of the fact that it is one of the key issues that is before the court. Isiguzoro, in his statement had asserted that “the interpretation of the constitutional requirement for a presidential candidate to win 25 % of 2/3 of the states and the Federal Capital Territory FCT), Abuja, is a crucial issue that the judiciary must address”.
Jare Ajayi further said: “We emphasise the consequences of an erroneous judgment in light of recent events such as the Nigerien military coup”.
Afenifere, in the statement, noted that it is too weighty not to be challenged because of its far-reaching implications.
