Lokoja Judgment: An Unnecessary Serious Setback for Nigerian Democracy
Today was an exceptionally busy day. I left Lagos in the early hours for Emekuku, where I visited the School of Nursing Sciences, an institution I have consistently supported over the years. It was gratifying to inspect projects funded through my previous interventions, including the school’s computer laboratory. Such investments reaffirm my belief that education remains one of the strongest foundations for national development.
From there, I attended the 80th birthday celebration of the Emeritus Archbishop of Owerri, Most Rev. Dr Anthony Obinna, whose commitment to justice, peace, and the common good has inspired many, before proceeding to Madonna University for another engagement.
It was at Madonna University that I received the court news of the Lokoja court rulings through my brother, Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso.
Every Nigerian committed to the country’s progress should be deeply concerned. This judgment represents another setback for our democracy and the institutions upon which our future depends.
It is regrettable that some who claim to champion democracy now appear determined to weaken the very institutions that sustain it. In doing so, they are undermining public confidence and endangering the future of millions of Nigerians.
The legislature and the judiciary are increasingly being drawn into this pattern of institutional decline. Democracy cannot thrive where institutions lose their independence and credibility.
Those who seek to weaken Nigeria’s democratic foundations will not ultimately prevail. When a similar situation recently affected the ADC, I condemned it without hesitation. I do so again today because my position has always been guided by principle.
My concern is not about who becomes President. My concern is that Nigeria works. Our politics must move beyond the quest for power and focus instead on building a united nation founded on justice, strong institutions, the rule of law, and equal opportunity. That is the Nigeria we owe ourselves and the one we must leave for future generations.
I therefore urge all well-meaning Nigerians to rise above partisan interests and defend our democracy. The survival of our institutions is inseparable from the survival of our nation. It's when we work together that a new Nigeria of our dream is made POssible. -PO
As a Nigerian, I find it absurd that since 2022, Peter Obi has been the only major front-runner relentlessly grilled, constantly interviewed, and forced to engage the public at every turn. Meanwhile, Atiku and Tinubu seem to glide by without facing anything close to the same scrutiny. What exactly is going on here? Do they believe they are too important to be questioned, or are their supporters simply more comfortable shielding them from accountability and public scrutiny?
Nobody hears from the president, who sits on high Mount Olympus and only graces Nigerians with carefully scripted appearances and distant press statements from Bayo Onanuga, as though leadership is a privilege to be admired from afar rather than a responsibility to be constantly examined. Atiku is no different, equally distant, equally insulated, and just as unwilling to submit himself to the kind of sustained, unscripted engagement that true leadership demands.
My Prime Minister, Carney, faces the press almost daily and endures relentless grilling from the opposition in Parliament on virtually every issue. That is what accountability looks like in a functioning democracy.
Tinubu, on the other hand, answers to no one.
#NigeriaWillBeOK
So you are able to swiftly rescue a politician’s family but the children of the poor are still in the bush?! The Nigerian system keeps proving that the life of the ordinary Nigerian means nothing!
That kidnap and rescue looks staged btw 🤷🏾♂️.
@channelstv Talking absolute rubbish. Why should the consumer care if you are making profit or not?
I have had unlimited data plan in England for or 15 years now! The is how they deceive Nigerians with plenty grammar.
Can I beg that after elections
All campaign buses be converted to Ambulances and donated across the country to save lives
Some can also be converted to school buses
@OfficialPDPNig@kelvinchijike Shameless bunch!
Trying to bring back one of the worse presidents in the history of Nigeria.
Your party is dead just stop already!
“Dear Nigerian youths, please take one minute of your time to listen to me. If we can vote President Tinubu out of power, Nigeria will improve by at least 70%. It would send a message that whoever we elect can be removed if they fail to perform. That alone will make anyone seeking power understand that they must deliver and do the right thing. Everybody should start preaching to everyone to get their voters card, the time is now. 80% people that talk on social media don't even have PVC”
— VeryDarkMan.