As Nigeria draws near to the 2023 general elections, the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court of Nigeria, Justice John T. Tsoho, has said that judges must be wary of desperate politicians.
Tsoho gave the advice at the 38 Annual Judges Conference of the Judges of the Federal High Court on Tuesday, in relation to pending pre-election matters before the court.
Following the development and the 1999 constitutional requirement of concluding such cases within 180 days from the date of filing the suit, Tsoho, by the end of October 2022, constituted a special taskforce of judges that will dispose pending pre-election matters.
According to a statement by the Body of Senior Advocates of Nigeria on Monday, as read by Adegboyega Awomolo SAN, the number of pre-election matters yet to be concluded by the Federal High Court judges so far are around 553.
It is expected that pre-election cases are concluded before the general elections.
The CJ told the judges at the opening ceremony that while he commends his brother judges for their understanding and unwavering commitment to handling pre-election cases, the mandate on the Special Task Force to “avert a looming chaos” is still ongoing, adding that “it is however necessary to stress that the battle is not yet over”.
He urged them to ensure that they conclude all the pre-election cases and avert a situation where any of the cases will be caught up with time.
Moreso, he warned of desperate politicians who would want to trap them into getting emotional and deviate from the standard practice as judges.
