By Lanre Adewole
The European Union has 28 of the world’s 195 countries in its fold. Of the 28, maybe three or four, with the exit of United Kingdom, can be counted as possessing a voice that compels the world to listen. Of the lot, only France and Germany can be counted as having considerable global weight and relevance. Then, there are potentially-big, like Finland, world’s happiest space, Spain, famed for its well-grown football, Portugal, with its CR7 and other smaller but well-rated countries with performing-economies like Lithuania, Denmark and Sweden.
In their Article of Faith, they said the unionization is, “to make things better, easier and safer for people”. They also said they agreed to work together, to help each other.
Ordinarily whenever EU roars like it just did over the contentious election Nigeria conducted in February and March this year, the bother shouldn’t be beyond the borders of a regional bloc, showing more than a passing interest in global affairs. EU’s weight in global affairs, shouldn’t ordinarily be bigger than AU’s (African Union) interventions, which always carry little significance, like the recent voyage to Kiyv and Moscow for peace, which was largely spurned by the warring parties, especially now that the biggest name in the coalition, UK, had withdrawn.
But the exit of UK, known as Brexit, seemed to have further propelled America to draw the Union closer into its closet, making it an unequal ally in global affairs.
So for those who understand global politicking, the recent release of the damning report by EU, especially the timing of its release, can’t just be a regular occurrence. Yes, EU was one of the numerous international observers that observed the show of shame that INEC, the political class and the security agencies, put on display for the rest of the world to see, but EU wasn’t just any observer. In recent time, EU and America collaborate or better put, EU kowtows to America and most of its decisions are largely influenced by Washington. There is absolutely no chance that EU would be taking such a massive political step that could end up delegitimising the poll and the new leader that emerged from it, without sharing such “confidentiality”, with America and the fact that the Report came out the way it did and the timing of its release, is a signal that the West, may be working towards certain permutations against the current political leadership in Nigeria.
Those challenging the election of the President wasted no time, latching on the report which practically wrote off the poll, particularly the presidential election as a sham and dropped it as an evidence with the body of jurists adjudicating on the outcome of the poll. Now that the damning report is before the adjudicators, alongside other body of evidence earlier dumped on the court by the petitioners, the burden to disprove has now shifted to the President, INEC and ultimately the Judiciary.
The sponsors of the protesters that stormed the EU office in Abuja, asking that the Body vacate the country and stop meddling in its affairs, knew the gravity of the report, which release, dominated both the local and foreign media. The sponsors are also likely the supporters of the current administration which must have seen the inherent dangers and pits for it, in the conclusions reached by the EU, expected to likely reflect in the conclusions that the Court of Appeal panel, would reach.
As a major donor partner to Nigeria and national institutions like INEC, EU has earned the right to speak to perceived ills in our electoral system. You can say, the Body has been putting its money, so it can put its mouth at the appropriate time. Don’t they say that if you bought whirlwind, you must feel spun. After pouring millions of pounds into supporting the last general election, EU expectedly expected a better outing from those running the system. They failed Nigeria and her friends. The EU report is akin to a demand for accountability.
But beyond castigating the institutions which wasted its giveaways, EU’s Report coming in the middle of the dispute resolution, looks like the foreign Body, wants to be part of the resolution process, by making its dissent count, beyond just remonstrating and asking INEC and other recipients of its past largesse, like the security agencies, to go and sin no more.
That sounds like accountability coming with justice, which won’t be a bad idea, if those conclusions by EU, could be substantiated, beyond a foreign Body, just saying those infractions happened.
For those who do not want to be bothered by the maxims of “prove beyond reasonable doubt” and substantial compliance”, the EU Report is what Yoruba will call “arun oju” (nothing to prove again). But winners from the poll, particularly the party and the man that took away the biggest diadem, APC and President Asiwaju, the EU Report, isn’t more than what the law would categorize as “hearsay”.
There is this popular saying about the Law being an a*s. Its applications, especially the one they call Mischief Rule of Interpretation, can drill a hole in otherwise sound legal reasoning, backed with solid precedents of superior courts of records. The Mischief Rule can be worse than judgments borne out of Technicality, especially in election matters, when the Court had decided a particular party, must win.
No Presidential Election Petition Court has ever annulled a presidential poll in Nigeria and the Supreme Court which handles presidential appeal, hasn’t also. Yet, the standard of the conduct of election keeps falling in Nigeria, including the 2015 poll, won by the opposition defeating an incumbent, where kindergarten-age voters, flooded polling booths in the North, egged on by desperate politicians, to vote a particular candidate.
If more and more Nigerians are giving elections a wide possible berth, it is majorly down to the Judiciary, being seen as letting election scams, go unpunished or even rewarded. While Nigerians have come to accept that the desperation for power and its appurtenances would always make politicians rig, that politicians’ lackeys in INEC, would also always collaborate in the rigging plots and plans and that security agencies would deliver for the government in power and those who could pay for their services, the biggest disappointment for Nigerians yearning for a clean-up in our electoral system, is the Judiciary letting the riggers get away every election cycle.
As the last hope of the common man, the Judiciary must find a way to reconnect with the Nigerian Public, which, despite all the past disappointments, still sees the Judiciary as the only institution in the polity, capable of bringing redemption to the sinking system. Being on the side of the people, should be enough motivation for the arm of government, to save the country, from future odium, the kind the West just poured on it.
Adebowole writes from Lagos
