Justice Monica Dongban-Mensem, President of the Court of Appeal, has made a significant move by transferring all election petition cases in the 36 states to Abuja and Lagos divisions of the appellate court. This means that appellate cases arising from election petition tribunals’ judgments will now be centralized in these two divisions, impacting gubernatorial, national, and state assembly elections.
This decision follows allegations of compromised judges and a disturbing alliance between some governors and tribunal judges, which has led to aperversion of justice at the trial level.
It’s reported that some judges may face trial by the National Judicial Council (NJC) as a result.
Hon. Thomas Ereyitomi welcomed the decision, however, lamented its financial implications.
“We have the notice transferring the cases from Delta State to Lagos and we have complied. Its financial implications are huge but no sacrifice is too much to get a fair and impartial judgement,” Ereyitomi said.
Credit:Imran Muhammad/X