A Senior Advocate of Nigeria and lead counsel to the Accord Party, Musibau Adetunmbi, has urged the Federal Government to avoid excessive desperation for political power and allow the rule of law to guide democratic governance in the country.
Adetunmbi made the call on Wednesday while speaking on Frontline, a current affairs programme on Eagle 102.5 FM, Ilese-Ijebu, Ogun State.
The senior lawyer warned that political desperation could weaken democratic institutions and undermine public confidence in governance.
“First and foremost, the current Federal Government should please not be too desperate about power. They should allow the rule of law to prevail,” he said.
His remarks came amid the legal battle surrounding the deregistration of five political parties, including the African Democratic Congress and Accord Party, by a Federal High Court sitting in Abuja.
Justice Peter Lifu had ordered the deregistration of the parties over alleged failure to meet constitutional requirements for political parties.
However, the Court of Appeal on Tuesday halted the enforcement of the judgment after granting a stay of execution pending the determination of the appeal filed by the affected parties.
Speaking on the development, Adetunmbi said the Accord Party remained committed to pursuing justice through lawful means.
“You could remember yesterday that I told you that the Accord Party would do everything within the ambit of the law to defend our rights and right the wrong. By the grace of Almighty Allah, we were in court and arguments were taken. At the end of the day, their lordships ruled that the enforcement of the judgment be stalled pending June 25 when the substantive appeal will be heard,” he said.
The legal practitioner also dismissed suggestions that the Independent National Electoral Commission was siding with the Accord Party in the dispute.
According to him, INEC was only supporting what it considered the just position in the matter.
“I will not say INEC is throwing its weight behind our party. INEC is throwing its weight behind the justice of the matter. It is not throwing its weight behind our party,” he stated.
Adetunmbi noted that the power to deregister political parties is constitutionally vested in INEC, adding that ongoing litigation made it inappropriate to comment extensively on some aspects of the case.
The SAN also defended the integrity of the judiciary, saying that while a few judicial officers may fall short of expectations, the majority of judges remained committed to justice and the rule of law.
“In the judiciary, we have so many honest jurists at the High Court, Court of Appeal and Supreme Court levels. Just like every society, there may be bad eggs, but the system is doing its best to address such issues,” he said.
He expressed concern over the growing number of political cases before Nigerian courts, warning that they were consuming valuable judicial time that should be devoted to criminal and civil matters affecting ordinary citizens.
According to him, many accused persons remain in detention while their cases suffer delays because courts are compelled to prioritise election-related and political disputes.
“Prisoners are there. People accused rightly or wrongly are in detention, while precious judicial time that should be spent on their matters is being devoted to political cases. We must look at our problems holistically and ask what we can do to put Nigeria on the path of the right attitude,” he said.
Adetunmbi further argued that allegations of judicial inconsistency should not automatically be interpreted as deliberate disobedience of superior court decisions.
He explained that many judges accused of misconduct were often alleged to have failed to follow legal precedents rather than intentionally disobeying court orders.
The senior lawyer also highlighted infrastructural challenges confronting the judiciary, lamenting the poor condition of some courtrooms across the country.
He, however, maintained that the National Judicial Council has adequate mechanisms for monitoring and disciplining judges through petitions, oversight procedures and other accountability measures.
“They have a number of judgments they must submit quarterly, and whenever petitions are received, they are investigated and acted upon in line with due process,” he added.
