Politics

Atiku, PDP Make Case For Live Broadcast Of Proceedings

Atiku, PDP Make Case For Live Broadcast Of Proceedings

The candidate of the Peoples Democratic Occasion (PDP) within the February 25 presidential election, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, has approached the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal (PEPT) for an order permitting reside broadcast of the day-to-day proceedings of the Courtroom concerning his petition.

Atiku and the PDP in an software dated Could 5, had been particularly praying the Tribunal for “An order directing the Courtroom’s Registry and the events on modalities for admission of Media Practitioners and their tools into the courtroom.”

The applying filed on their behalf by their group of attorneys led by Chief Chris Uche, SAN, was predicated on amongst different grounds, the matter earlier than the Honourable Courtroom is a dispute over the end result of the Presidential Election held on twenty fifth February 2023, a matter of nationwide concern and public curiosity, involving residents and voters within the 36 States of the Federation and the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, who voted and took part within the stated election; and the Worldwide Group as regards the workings of Nigeria’s electoral course of”.

They contended that being a novel electoral dispute with a peculiar constitutional dimension, it was a matter of public curiosity whereof tens of millions of Nigerian residents and voters are stakeholders with a constitutional proper to obtain.

“An integral a part of the constitutional responsibility of the Courtroom to carry proceedings in public is a discretion to permit public entry to proceedings both bodily or by digital means.

“With the large and super technological advances and developments in Nigeria and past, together with the present pattern by this Honourable Courtroom in the direction of embracing digital procedures, digital listening to and digital submitting, a departure from the Guidelines to permit a regulated televising of the proceedings on this matter is in consonance with the maxim that justice should not solely be carried out, however have to be seen to be carried out.

“Televising court docket proceedings is just not alien to this Honourable Courtroom, and can improve public confidence,” they said.

Recall that the Nigerian Bar Affiliation (NBA), had in its communique on the finish of its Nationwide Government Committee (NEC) assembly in Birnin Kebbi, Kebbi State on March 23, referred to as the judiciary to permit for reside broadcast of the court docket hearings on election petitions, notably the presidential election circumstances.

Additionally, a gaggle, beneath the aegis of Leaders of Ideas and Authorized Icons, had supported the initiative. To this finish, the group had invited Nigerians to enroll on an enchantment on commonbliceng, a non-partisan on-line platform, in assist of the initiative.

Equally, main human rights lawyer, Femi Falana, SAN and key leaders of considered Venture Nigeria Motion (PNM), a physique of eminent leaders of thought within the nation, led by foremost constitutional lawyer, Prof. Ben Nwabueze, have backed requires reside broadcast of the election petition trials.

In the identical vein, former Director Basic of Nigeria Tv Authority (NTA) and communications scholar, Prof Tonnie Iredia, had in an incisive printed paper referred to as for televised election petition proceedings in Nigeria within the curiosity of nationwide concern and public curiosity, as envisaged by the 1999 Structure (As Amended).

Nevertheless, no date has been mounted for listening to on the recent software by Atiku and PDP.

LEADERSHIP reviews that the PEPT will this Monday start listening to on the petitions stuffed by aggrieved candidates within the February 25 presidential election.

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