Endless Litigation Over Elections Worries INEC

Since Nigeria’s transition to democracy in 1999, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has voiced worries about the contentious character of elections there.

The commission has also criticised the numerous inconsistent court rulings, which have started to emerge as a recurring problem in Nigeria’s electoral law. Barr. Toyin Babalola, the INEC director of Legal Drafting and Contacts, emphasised the necessity for political parties to preserve the norms of internal democracy and make sure that candidate nominations reflect the views of their members.

According to Babalola, contesting elections is a crucial component of constitutional democracies all over the world.

Obstacles to litigation include a lack of internal party democracy, a failure to follow the party constitution and guidelines, the replacement of candidates on an arbitrary basis, and the nomination of stand-ins.

The commission’s worries are based on the partial departure from the stare decisis doctrine, which led to different judgements on the same facts and issues, which in turn caused uncertainty and a decline in faith in the electoral process.