As the courts set to sit and adjudicate on the disputes arising from the conduct of the 2023 elections, the former head of state, Gen. Yakubu Gowon, has appealed to Nigerians to abide by whatever decisions of the judiciary would make.
Recall that a deluge of petitions has flooded the courts following the results announced by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in the conduct of the February 25 and March 18 presidential/national assembly and governorship/state legislative elections respectively.
Messrs Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Peter Obi of the Labour Party (LP) respectively have filed cases at the presidential election petitions tribunal, challenging the declaration of Mr. Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as the winner of the February 25 presidential poll.
Speaking yesterday as a special guest at the 15th Edition of Punuka Annual Lecture and Symposium, organised in honour of a late Justice of the Supreme Court, Chukwunweike Idigbe, Gowon, 88, urged the aggrieved candidates to give the judiciary a chance to decide.
“As a nation, we have come a long way since our independence in 1960, and we have faced many challenges along the way- to put it moderately.
“It is no secret that the judiciary plays a vital role in nation-building and in keeping us united as a nation.
“The judiciary, in essence, is the guardian of the constitution and the rule of law. The judiciary provides a check on the powers of the executive and legislative branches and ensures that the rights and freedoms of the citizens are protected through the instrumentality of the court.
“The judiciary serves as the bedrock of our democracy, and it is only through a strong, independent and impartial judiciary that we can ensure the protection of our democracy and the advancement of our nation.
“The judiciary has overtime maintained its enviable status as the beacon of hope for our democracy, serving as the balance between every class and truly the hope of the common man.
“As we move forward as a nation, let us not forget the role that the judiciary plays in nation-building, especially the apex court in carrying out its duty of questioning the veracity of the decisions of the lower courts.
“As such we need to allow the apex court, their deliberations and come up with their decisions and as the public to be humble enough to accept their decision as final in order to maintain the sanctity of the judiciary as individuals and institutions.
“This is very important at this stage in view of the post-election litigations that are now going on.
“Let us give the judiciary the opportunity to do that work and let us accept their decision as it is,” he counseled.
Eulogising the late Idigbe who served as a chief judge in the defunct Republic of Biafra before he was recalled to the Supreme Court in 1975, Gowon said the deceased was one of the finest jurists that ever sat on the Supreme Court bench.
He said Idigbe embodied the ideals of courage, service, justice and fairness.
“Justice Idigbe’s life and work on and off the bench exemplify the ideals of integrity, courage, and service.
“His unwavering dedication to justice and fairness has been a source of inspiration to many, and his legacy will continue to live on for generations to come”, he added.
The late Idigbe was a graduate of law from the King’s College London and Middle Temple (Inns Court of London) where he finished with a LL.B. Second Class Upper Division.
He won the coveted Forster-Campbell Prize in Criminal Law in 1946.
He was called to the bar in 1947 and thereafter established a private law practice in Warri that covered the Western African Court of Appeal.
He returned to Nigeria in 1947 and was called to the Nigerian Bar.
He was appointed a judge of the Eastern Nigeria High Court, and in 1964, he was elevated to the position of Justice of the Supreme Court.
From 1964 to 1967, he served concurrently as the chief justice of then newly created Mid-Western region before he ‘defected’ to the defunct Biafra Republic at the outbreak of the civil war and ceased to be a Nigerian judge.
In 1975, he was reappointed as a Justice of the Supreme Court of Nigeria.
As a judge he was chairman of a land use committee set up to review the land tenure system in Nigeria.
He died in 1983 at 59.
