PEPC: Labour Party Express Worry Over Justice Odili’s Alleged ‘Unguarded’ Pre-judgment Pronouncement
The Labour Party has decried the insensitivity of a preemptive pronouncement made by a retired Justice of the Supreme Court, Mary Odili’ as regards the forthcoming election tribunal verdict.
Obiora Ifoh, LP’s National Publicity Secretary expressed this in a statement released in Abuja, on Tuesday.
Ifoh said the unguarded statement made by the retired justice along with some other legal luminaries had left the party in shock.
“The unguarded statement from the former Justice of the Supreme Court of Nigeria, Justice Mary Odili, in Abuja, last week at a colloquium to mark the 25th anniversary of the elevation of a renowned jurist, JK Gadzama to the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria, SAN.
“And the boasting of some persons, serving ministers and notable legislators about the outcome has left our party in shock.
“When those who should know the importance of the sanctity of the judiciary descend to the arena of abusing it with their preemptive utterances just to show loyalty and support to their interests, we as a party see this as unfortunate and dangerous to our democratic journey as a nation.
“We note also, the needless lavish showering of praises on the legal counsels of both APC and Bola Ahmed Tinubu by the retired Justice when the gathering was not theirs.
“We find this extremely undignified of a renowned jurist who rose to the peak of her career in the country’s Apex court and who as the Chairperson of the body of benchers, should be at the forefront of defending the virtuousness of the courts.”
As per Odili’s statement, she said the lawyer defending President Bola Tinubu at the elections petitions tribunal, Wole Olanipekun, is a master of electoral disputes whose expertise in tribunal litigation inspires confidence for victory.
She also claimed that “a resetting of the mind” is soon to come for losers who would eventually accept their loss.
However, Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Femi Falana on Monday while appearing as a guest on Channels Television’s Politics Today, voiced out on different blackmails directed at the judiciary saying no election petition has attracted much attention in the country since colonial rule.
He said, “I am worried that people give the impression that everything ends with the judgment of the Court of Appeal, the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal. Any party that loses on Wednesday still has the opportunity to appeal to the Supreme Court. So, what is the basis for the cheap blackmail that is going on?”
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