Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Ezenwo Wike has called on
Nigerians to prevail on the National Assembly to override President
Muhammadu Buhari’s veto of the 2010 Electoral Act Amendment Bill to
guarantee free, fair and credible electoral system in the
country.
Addressing the 2018 Annual Nigeria Bar Association (NBA) Section
on Legal Practice Conference in Port Harcourt on Thursday ,
Governor Wike urged Nigerian legal practitioners to rise up and
insist on the relevance of the amended Electoral Act 2010.
He said: “We must all stand up against the devilish efforts by
some anti-democratic forces to kill the ongoing process to amend
the 2010 Electoral Act on the whimsical excuse that the order of
elections proposed in the Amendment Bill contravenes the
discretionary powers of INEC, which, in any case, has not
complained of any mischief occasioned by the new order.
“Let me remind us that a defining feature of the legal
profession is the commitment to promote both the substantive rules
and the processes of the law, as well as, to defend the democratic
values of our society.”
Governor Wike said though the 2010 Electoral Act was enacted to
promote credible elections, the All Progressive Congress (APC)
working with the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC)
and the Police manipulated the Act to rig the rerun elections in
Rivers State.
He said in view of the fraudulent activities of INEC, APC and
the Police , the Tribunal and the Court of Appeal upheld results
concocted by the Police for the Rivers Rerun Elections
He said: “We all saw how results sheets were duplicated with
identical serial numbers and handed over to the police to entre
fake results and returns in favour of the candidates of the APC in
the said elections.
“In spite of this law, we all saw how both the tribunal and the
Court of Appeal anchored their verdicts on results that were
generated and certified from the custody of the Nigerian Police,
while the results from INEC, which conducted the elections, were
branded irrelevant and accordingly rejected.
“What all these mean is that a thousand Electoral Laws may
amount to nothing for as long as the Federal Government, the INEC,
the Police and other government agencies that may legally or
illegally be brought into the election process, continue to
disrespect the law and trample on our democratic rights to free and
fair elections with impunity and without suffering any legal pains
or punishment for their criminal conduct.”
Governor Wike urged the legal profession to constantly reinvent
and reposition itself in response to existing and new challenges
both in the theory and practice of the law.
The governor also said lawyers must also rethink the way they
practice to remain relevant in the profession and meet the needs of
their clients and society in the most professional, diligent and
efficient manner.
Declaring the conference open, Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice
Walter Onoghen represented by Justice AB Gumel said the timing of
the conference is right as it will allow the bench and bar the
opportunity to appraise emerging issues of justice delivery.
He urged judges to adhere to the tenets of the law in their
delivery of judgments.
President of the Nigerian Bar Association, NBA, Abubakar Mahmoud
(SAN) said the Nigerian Bar Association Section on Law Practice is
a vehicle for deepening professional practice in the bar.
Chairman of NBA Section on Legal Practice, Mainnaya Essien (SAN)
said recent ethical issues require an appraisal of practice and
challenges.
Highpoint of the conference was the presentation of a
recognition plaque to Governor Wike by the NBA President for the
outstanding contributions of the Rivers State Governor to the legal
profession.
Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Ezenwo Wike has called on
Nigerians to prevail on the National Assembly to override President
Muhammadu Buhari’s veto of the 2010 Electoral Act Amendment Bill to
guarantee free, fair and credible electoral system in the
country.
Addressing the 2018 Annual Nigeria Bar Association (NBA) Section
on Legal Practice Conference in Port Harcourt on Thursday ,
Governor Wike urged Nigerian legal practitioners to rise up and
insist on the relevance of the amended Electoral Act 2010.
He said: “We must all stand up against the devilish efforts by
some anti-democratic forces to kill the ongoing process to amend
the 2010 Electoral Act on the whimsical excuse that the order of
elections proposed in the Amendment Bill contravenes the
discretionary powers of INEC, which, in any case, has not
complained of any mischief occasioned by the new order.
“Let me remind us that a defining feature of the legal
profession is the commitment to promote both the substantive rules
and the processes of the law, as well as, to defend the democratic
values of our society.”
Governor Wike said though the 2010 Electoral Act was enacted to
promote credible elections, the All Progressive Congress (APC)
working with the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC)
and the Police manipulated the Act to rig the rerun elections in
Rivers State.
He said in view of the fraudulent activities of INEC, APC and
the Police , the Tribunal and the Court of Appeal upheld results
concocted by the Police for the Rivers Rerun Elections
He said: “We all saw how results sheets were duplicated with
identical serial numbers and handed over to the police to entre
fake results and returns in favour of the candidates of the APC in
the said elections.
“In spite of this law, we all saw how both the tribunal and the
Court of Appeal anchored their verdicts on results that were
generated and certified from the custody of the Nigerian Police,
while the results from INEC, which conducted the elections, were
branded irrelevant and accordingly rejected.
“What all these mean is that a thousand Electoral Laws may
amount to nothing for as long as the Federal Government, the INEC,
the Police and other government agencies that may legally or
illegally be brought into the election process, continue to
disrespect the law and trample on our democratic rights to free and
fair elections with impunity and without suffering any legal pains
or punishment for their criminal conduct.”
Governor Wike urged the legal profession to constantly reinvent
and reposition itself in response to existing and new challenges
both in the theory and practice of the law.
The governor also said lawyers must also rethink the way they
practice to remain relevant in the profession and meet the needs of
their clients and society in the most professional, diligent and
efficient manner.
Declaring the conference open, Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice
Walter Onoghen represented by Justice AB Gumel said the timing of
the conference is right as it will allow the bench and bar the
opportunity to appraise emerging issues of justice delivery.
He urged judges to adhere to the tenets of the law in their
delivery of judgments.
President of the Nigerian Bar Association, NBA, Abubakar Mahmoud
(SAN) said the Nigerian Bar Association Section on Law Practice is
a vehicle for deepening professional practice in the bar.
Chairman of NBA Section on Legal Practice, Mainnaya Essien (SAN)
said recent ethical issues require an appraisal of practice and
challenges.
Highpoint of the conference was the presentation of a
recognition plaque to Governor Wike by the NBA President for the
outstanding contributions of the Rivers State Governor to the legal
profession.