Like NBA, Like Osun: Issues in Election Credibility

The Advocate By Onikepo Braithwaite Onikepo.braithwaite@thisdaylive.com Certain actions lend credibility to an election or government, while others discredit either the election, or the government, particularly when the actions complained about occur on the eve of elections. The ‘problematic’ actions tend to make observers either question the motives of the government, the incumbent, election organisers or participants, or conclude that there is an underlying sinister plan to make sure someone loses an election or give others a better chance to win. We have seen this in our general elections, and even the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) national elections held last month. 2023 Presidential Election When President Bola Tinubu, GCFR lost Lagos to Peter Obi in the 2023 Presidential election, it brought some credibility to the election. Lagos has been known as President Tinubu’s stronghold, since he became Governor of the State in 1999. A Yoruba candidate losing his stronghold in Yorubaland to a non-Yoruba candidate in the first election that he personally stood for after 20 years, albeit that Lagos, like the FCT, Abuja, is considered to be a melting pot of all ethnicities, not only somewhat rendered the argument of some who cried foul that the election in Lagos was rigged as debatable, but brought back the nostalgia of Federalism of the good old days where non-indigenes/different ethnicities were able to win elections in areas where they were settlers. 2026 Osun State Gubernatorial Election  On the other hand, other actions that sabotage the credibility of an election are like that of the EFCC (Economic and Financial Crimes Commission) placing a ‘Post No Debit’ (PND) on the Osun State Government (OSG) Account at First Bank, a few days to the Gubernatorial election scheduled to take place on August 15; it not only brings the Federal Government into disrepute, seeing as the EFCC is one of its agencies, but discredits the election itself, as it smacks of desperation to sabotage the operations of the OSG just before the election, to make it unpopular, even with its workers, thereby giving the main contender, the APC (All Progressives Congress), Nigeria’s ruling party, a chance to take advantage of the unpopularity of OSG created by the freezing of its account and inability to meet its commitments, to win the election.  Even though the EFCC insists the freeze was triggered by sudden recent large transfers, the timing makes EFCC’s actions appear to be less altruistic and more like witch-hunting a political opponent, particularly as OSG is the only State that suffered that fate, despite the fact that the EFCC’s Director of Public Affairs, Wilson Uwujaren, stated on an the Arise TV Morning Show Interview last Thursday, that 18 States were under investigation. Why were their accounts not frozen too? Because they are predominantly APC? EFCC’s actions concerning OSG, appeared to be a preparation to set the stage for an election that would be conducted on an uneven playing field! It was therefore good, that President Tinubu, embarrassed by EFCC’s not-so-subtle move, publicly stated that he was unaware of EFCC’s outing in Osun State, ordered EFCC to go to court to vacate the order freezing the account, even though Governor Ademola Adeleke, in an earlier statement, did mention that the action was taken without a court order. There appears to be a controversy, about the existence of a court order. Mr Uwujaren didn’t specifically set this record straight, but responded that by virtue of Section 7(6) of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act 2022 (MLA), the Commission had 72 hours from the date the account was frozen to secure a court order, “if it is discovered that such account or transaction is suspected to be involved in any unlawful act”. See Polaris Bank Ltd v Jude Bela Eje, EFCC & Ors (2022) LPELR-57975 (CA)  per Muslim Sule Hassan, JCA where the Court of Appeal held: “Upon the expiration of the 72 hours and where the Commission is not done with its activities in respect of the account, a court order has to be obtained to extend the life of the order freezing the account. Where the required court order is not made available, the stop order or the order freezing the account lapses, and the financial institution must unfreeze the account”. Even though the PND would have lapsed in 72 hours, the President appears to have understood the implications and bad optics arising from EFCC’s action, which necessitated him to publicly distance himself from it. Or maybe it was necessary because, even without proof of any unlawful act on OSG’s part, EFCC could still have secured a court order or kept the account frozen. After all, the accounts of a client of mine were frozen by EFCC for over 6 years, without a court order or evidence of any unlawful act. Many see EFCC as a tool for political witch-hunting, or settling score

Read More