A case brought by two non-governmental organisations against the Federal Republic of Nigeria will be decided by the ECOWAS Court on July 3, 2023.
The Organizations want the government to be held accountable for violating their rights by taking so long to approve the legislation allowing independent candidates to run for office.
They are the Prince & Princess Charles Offokaja Foundation (Nigeria) and the Prince & Princess Charles Offokaja Foundation (incorporated) (Switzerland).
Judge Dupe Atoki noted that both parties had submitted all of their arguments and pleadings during the hearing this week before announcing the adjournment.
During the session, the attorney for the Nigerian government was not present; the reason for this is unknown.
The NGOs claimed that their right to freedom of expression had been violated in the lawsuit, ECW/CCJ/APP/39/22, which they filed on September 12, 2022.
They said that despite a senior government official’s assurances, State Assemblies could only approve the resolutions necessary for the bill’s passage after the deadline of August 2022.
The applicants also cited another government spokesperson’s assurance that independent candidates would be allowed to run for office following the constitution amendment.
The complaint referenced the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, and Articles 1 and 9(1) and 9(2).
The human rights organisations demand that Nigeria respond in response to official government statements that are backed up by evidence.
The parties in the dispute request that the ECOWAS Court find that the state assembly must decide whether to approve or reject the proposed constitutional change.
The Houses of Assembly have been considering the National Assembly’s bill on independent candidature since March 2022.
The organisations also asked the court to order the Nigerian administration to include independent candidates on the ballot for all upcoming elections.
Justices Ricardo Cláudio Monteiro Gonçalves and Sengu Mohamed Koroma were on the panel with Justice Atoki, who presided.
