Former Lagos State Governor, Bola Tinubu has cautioned the Nigerian judiciary against truncating democracy through unnecessary illegal orders. He stated that democracy is the best option for development while delivering his Democracy Day broadcast to the nation in Abuja.
Tinubu emphasized that only the rule of law and a robust judiciary can ensure justice and strong institutions in Nigeria. He pointed out that democracy has firmly taken hold of Nigeria’s political landscape with the outcome of the 2023 elections and the resort of aggrieved parties to the Court.
“The intense contestation of the polls is itself positive evidence that democracy is well and alive in our land,” Tinubu said.
He went further to explain that the loser of an election could win in the next round of elections. However, those who cannot endure the pain of defeat in an election do not deserve the joy of victory when it is their turn to triumph.
“Above all, those who disagree with the outcome of the elections are taking full advantage of the constitutional provisions to seek redress in court,” he stated.
Tinubu emphasized that the actions of aggrieved persons or groups seeking redress in court indicate that “democracy is still the best form of government invented by man.”
“We have traversed the dark, thorny path of dictatorship before, and those who experienced it can readily testify to the unbridgeable gap between the dignity of freedom and the humiliation and degradation of tyranny,” Tinubu explained.
June 12 has been declared a public holiday in Nigeria in recognition of the democratic sacrifices of Nigerians. It is marked to celebrate the end of military rule in Nigeria and the beginning of uninterrupted civilian rule since Nigeria’s independence from colonialists in 1960.
NAN
