Speaking in Abuja on Thursday, October 17,
Jonathan referenced a controversial court decision regarding the suspension and
expulsion of a PDP National Chairman and called on the Supreme Court to review
the judgment.
“The way things are going in this country, especially
listening to the judgments being given regarding political cases, we are
beginning to see that democracy in Nigeria is like a cone that is being turned
upside down," Jonathan said. ""And if a cone is turned upside
down it cannot be stable and at the slightest perturbation, it will fall."
Jonathan also expressed dismay at the
influence of political factors on legal decisions, emphasizing the need for
neutrality among lawyers and judges to ensure the stability of Nigeria's
political system.
“If our democracy will endure, people, both
at the Bar and the Bench, should not be carried away by political influence.
That is the only way we can stabilize the political process,” Jonathan added.
The former president shared his concerns
during the launch of 50 books by legal luminary Mike Ozekhome (SAN) to mark his
67th birthday. The event was attended by prominent figures including
ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo, former Chairman of the Body of Benchers Chief
Wole Olanipekun (SAN), and Labour Party’s former presidential candidate Peter
Obi.
Jonathan pointed to a specific judgment,
which he described as troubling: “There is a particular judgment that has been
haunting me... it simply turned the cone upside down, and if the courts don’t
look back into this case, it will create so much instability in the political
system that it would affect all of us."
He criticized a court ruling that allowed a
Ward Chairman to expel a National Chairman of a political party, calling it
unnatural and misaligned with justice. “And, you cannot tell me that the Head
of Department in a university, for example, can expel the Vice Chancellor. So,
how can the Nigerian law tell me that a Ward Chairman can expel a national
officer of a political party?”
Jonathan emphasized that this judgment has
been a key factor in the internal conflicts within the PDP and has even caused
issues within the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in the past.
“I am appealing with the Supreme Court to
revisit that judgment, because that judgment has turned the cone upside down,
and the political process, the democracy, is wobbling," Jonathan
concluded.
When asked
for his thoughts on the political situation in Nigeria, former President
Obasanjo declined to comment, saying, “I wouldn’t say anything, because there
is much to say, but there is not yet time for it."
0 Comments