The ruling by the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal (PEPT) led by 5-member team of justices from the appeal court and high courts upholding the electoral victory of the President Bola Ahmad Tinubu will go a long way in upholding our democracy and strengthening the efforts and independence of the Independent Electoral Commission (INEC).
The handling of the legal process and the verdict delivery displayed high level of legal sagacity, professionalism, and responsibility on the part of the tribunal judges despite the media and social media attacks lunch against their personalities and their families. The constitution has clearly laid down procedures to follow in challenging election at tribunals up to supreme courts. The action of some supporters from the opposition parties in blackmailing and threatening our Judges should highly condemned by all well-meaning Nigerians. One would wonder whether these actors and their supporters are interested in having a just system that works for all or that they are only interested in access to power by hook or crook. It is unfortunate that these actors who have also failed to learn from their previous mistakes of using economic, ethnic and religious blackmail to ascend to power have now resorted to blackmailing our justice system. It is therefore critical for well-meaning Nigerians and lawyers to speak up and upheld the sanctity of our judiciary. We should be careful of the possible repercussions that will befall us as a nation if we allow such elements to rubbish and destroy the image and confidence of our judiciary through their dubiously crafted lies and blackmail.
Apart from these treacherous plans against the judiciary, some of the actors from the opposition have secretly promoting and calling for national protest, with the aim of creating instability and worsening the socio-economic conditions of Nigerians. They are hoping to exploit the difficult economic challenges bedevilling Nigeria to rile up citizens into violent protest against the elected government. It has also emerged that some of these actors are planning to use the crisis and instability to promote military intervention, motivated by the recent military coups that is sweeping some of our neighbouring countries. This can be seen from quite a number of their supporters who are recorded on social media calling for crisis and military takeover in Nigeria. It is disheartening to see that a group of retired military generals threatening the elected government of president Tinubu with coup scare by reference to happenings in other African countries.
It is vitally important for us as citizens not to allow politicians and criminals to exploit our vulnerabilities and current economic difficulties to lead us into unimaginable crisis that will bring this country on it knees. At the end of the day, it is us the citizens that will bear the consequences of those crisis. Politicians should understand in clear terms that the only option for them to seek redress is through the judicial system as laid down by our constitution. The ruling delivered by the PEPT is not a final judicial judgement regarding presidential election, thus the petitioners have a right to appeal this ruling at the Supreme Court.
It is important for Nigerians to understand that the current economic situation should not be a reason to allow politicians exploit our anger. Every well-meaning Nigerian knows that difficult decisions and changes need to be implemented about the existing economic policies particularly regarding fuel subsidies and multiple foreign exchange rates. These schemes are bedevilled by corruption with only a few individuals enriching themselves from the nation’s wealth. It is crucial that Nigerians give the current government a chance and the needed time to implement the palliative programs and salary adjustments necessary to cushion the economic difficulties we are facing. Also, the plans by the government to direct savings from these inefficient schemes into developmental project should be highly welcome development, even if Nigerians don’t see the benefit in the short term, the medium- and long-term economic benefits will be enormous.
This is not in any way discouraging Nigerians from speaking up, Nigerians have every right to engage in constructive criticism of government decisions and processes, but for Nigerians to be careful with treacherous and selfish politicians who are power hungry and are willing to go to any extent just to gain power.
Abdulrazaq Alkali, Executive Director
OCCEN, wrote in from Abuja, Nigeria.

If Peter Obi had won the #NigerianElections2023, or at the Presidential Election Petition Court, there would have been a civil war in Nigeria.
This is because he and his Obidients were just too arrogant and were already recreating, and would have further recreated the events that led up to the Nigerian Civil War. Let me explain:
During the elections, there was nothing they did not do, including cyberbullying, threatening, abusing, insulting, name-calling, accusing, hounding, targeting, ganging up, mocking, caricaturing, and harassing anyone who refused to support them. I did not say anyone who was fighting them. No. Anyone who refused to support them. They made minimal attempts to be persuasive. It was just nogbu nzogbu, enyimba enyi!
They had a warped sense of entitlement that you must support Peter Obi, and if you did not, then you are supporting a “wrong candidate” (the exact words they used).
They were more fascistic than Mussolini. In terms of education, Peter Obi is at the bottom of the barrel, with his second-class degree in Philosophy. You can’t compare him to a PhD in Water Engineering (Kwankwaso), a Master’s with Distinction in International Relations (Atiku) and a BSc in Accounting (Tinubu). Joseph, have the fear of God and answer this question-am: Am I lying?
In terms of achievements in office, as vice President, Waziri Atiku led the National Economic Council, which paid off our entire foreign debt to the Bretton Woods institution and gave us a 7% GDP consistent annual growth rate. As Governor, Tinuhu built new cities from scratch, ports, rail infrastructure, roads, hospitals l, industries, independent power stations, paid civil servants, and mentored men like Osinbajo, Fashola, Aregbesola, Fayemi, Akabueze and co, who are now movers and shakers. He also increased Lagos’s internally generated revenue by 360%.
In contrast, when asked about his flagship achievement in office, Peter Obi pointed to a brewery, which has been proven to be a loss-making enterprise. Although he invested in schools already built, for which I applaud him, he did not build a single new school.
But he was the right candidate, and anyone who did not support him must be pilloried.
What led to the Nigerian Civil War? It began with the January 15, 1966 coup at which Majors Emmanuel Ifeajuna, Chukwuma Nzeogwu, Chris Anuforo, and Don Okafor killed political and military leaders from every region of Nigeria except theirs.
Major Adewale Ademoyeg was involved with the plotting but not the killing, unlike the others who participated in the massacre.
And in 2023, after Peter Obi lost, prominent Obidients with direct ties to Peter Obi were openly calling for a military coup to restore Obi’s mandate. These guys have learned nothing!
And that was only one reason for the civil war. The other reason was the arrogance and caricaturing of other Nigerians by supporters of Majors Nzeogwu and Ifeajuna (the coup leaders) after the coup.
Soon after the coup, some of their supporters printed almanacs with caricatures insulting prominent Northern, Western and Mid-Western leaders.
In one of the almanacs, Chukwuma Nzeogwu was shown with his leg on top of Sir Ahmadu Bello’s head. Interestingly, in that almanac, Ahmadu Bello’s head was put on the body of a goat.
Those almanacs outraged Northerners and made them turn against the Aguiyi Ironsi-led government.
In February of 1966, a famous Igbo highlife maestro named Celestine Ukwu released a song titled Ewu Ne Ba Akwa, meaning ‘the goat is crying’.
Rightly or wrongly, other Nigerians believed that that song was mocking the killing of the late Sardauna by Nzeogwu. That song and the almanac mocking the Sardauna ignited a pogrom against Igbos in the North. And things eventually descended to civil war.
Is that not what happened in 2023? Were Obidients not caricaturing those who refused to support Peter Obi? I personally was caricatured. Waziri Atiku, Bola Tinubu and their supporters were also caricatured. New Celestine Ukwu songs of 2023 were composed to insult those who supported other candidates instead of their right candidate.
And just as their leaders did not caution them in 1966, so did Peter Obi not caution them in 2022/23. There was no low or dirty thing they did not do, including publishing the photos of Justice Tsamani’s children along with threats to kill them (as they did with my then one-year-old daughter) and recruiting
Rufai Oseni to lie against me and others.
And then there was the Yes Daddy leaked audio, which revealed their true intention for the Muslim Ummah.
History does not repeat itself. Irresponsible people repeat history and then blame history for repeating itself. Peter Obi is one of such people, and I urge Nigerians to remember what he and his supporters stand for. Never forget. Keep that memory fresh. Because Peter and his horde will think we have forgotten and will try to hoodwink us in 2027. We must not fall for it.