June 12: Tinubu warns against using court orders to truncate democracy

President Bola Tinubu on Monday warned against arbitrary court orders aimed at truncating Nigerian democracy.

Mr. Tinubu, in his first Democracy Day speech as Nigeria's 16th President, said, "It has become imperative to declare here that unnecessary and unlawful orders used to truncate or abridge democracy will no longer be tolerated."

The president described Moshood Abiola, the winner of the canceled presidential election of June 12, 1993, as the "symbol of democracy".

Former Nigerian military dictator Ibrahim Babangida aborted Mr Abiola's victory based on a court ruling that nullified the election - a process that many citizens have described as the "most fair and freest" in the history of Nigerian democracy.

"The abortion, by military decree, of the decisive victory of leader Moshood Kashimawo Olawale Abiola of the defunct Social Democratic Party (SDP) in the presidential election of June 12, 1993, until then the most fair and freest in the political evolution of the country, has ironically proved to be the seed that germinated in the protracted struggle that gave birth to the democracy we have now enjoyed since 1999,” said Mr. Tinubu .

He said Nigerians resisted Mr Babangida's arbitrary cancellation of the elections through their "fierce commitment to enthroning democracy as a form of government".

Speaking on the disputes that often follow Nigeria's election campaign, Mr. Tinubu, whose victory in the February 25 presidential election is still being contested in court, said: "Those who cannot endure and accepting the pain of defeat in elections do not deserve the joy of victory when it is their turn to triumph."

Atiku Abubakar of the People's Democratic Party and Labor Party presidential candidate Peter Obi contest Mr Tinubu's victory in the Court of Petitions for the presidential election in Abuja.

The president said participants in recent elections who were dissatisfied with the results "take full advantage of the constitutional provisions to seek redress through the courts, and that's one of the reasons why democracy remains the best form of government invented by man."

"Judicial Trust"

He said the judiciary should be trusted to deliver justice, adding that he had recently harmonized the retirement age for judicial officers in the country.

The president explained that this decision "was aimed at strengthening the rule of law, which is an essential pillar of democracy".

ALSO READ: FOR THE RECORDS: Tinubu's first Democracy Day speech as President of Nigeria

During the preparations for Mr. Tinubu's inauguration on May 29 as President of Nigeria, several lawsuits were filed to prevent his swearing in.

In one of the lawsuits brought by the PDP, the Supreme Court on May 26, 74 hours before Mr. Tinubu's inauguration, cleared the coast for the big day.

The case had moved from the Federal High Court in Abuja to the Court of Appeal before ending up in the Supreme Court, where the PDP urged the courts to stop Mr Tinubu from being sworn in because of the double appointment of Kashim Shettima. as the president's running mate.

Similarly, two other lawsuits were filed in the Federal High Court in Abuja to truncate Mr. Tinubu's nomination, but the court dismissed them.