The President of the Court of Appeal, Justice Monica Dongban‑Mensem, announced on Friday that the court has so far received more than 600 pre‑election matters across its 20 divisions. She made the statement during a visit from Samuela Isopi, Ambassador of the European Union Delegation, to her office.
“The court has received over 600 pre‑election appeals in the 20 divisions from November to date, and more appeals are still being filed,” Dongban‑Mensem said. “Over 60 panels have been set up in the various divisions to hear and determine all pre‑election appeals. To ease the pressure on the Honorable Justices, experienced registrars have been empanelled to summarise the decisions made so far and distribute them to the divisions, thereby avoiding conflicting rulings.”
The President welcomed the Ambassador’s presence, noting that it provided an opportunity to exchange views, share experiences, and learn from each other’s work in their respective countries. She emphasized that transparency in the electoral process is a core value of democratic stability and praised the active involvement of Election Observation Missions in Nigeria to ensure free, fair, and credible elections. “The role of these observer organisations has greatly impacted the resolve to review the Electoral Act 2010,” she added.
Dongban‑Mensem highlighted that the Electoral Act 2022 introduced laudable innovations to strengthen democracy and ensure credible elections. “The Court of Appeal has reviewed, developed, and expanded the scope of working materials for judges,” she said, noting the creation of a Judicial Electoral Manual that incorporates Supreme Court and appellate decisions as well as the critical sections of the Electoral Act 2022. This manual aims to group appeals with similar facts and issues together, maintaining the doctrine of stare decisis.
She also outlined the challenges the court faces in preparing to fulfil its constitutional mandate, including a severe paucity of funds. “We have just 21 days to the general election, and the special intervention fund for the Election Petition Tribunal has not yet been released,” she explained, warning that this shortfall would negatively affect the court’s and tribunals’ ability to discharge their duties. “Provisions for procuring necessary materials and equipment should already be in place, and further training for Justices, tribunal members, and secretariat staff is needed, but we cannot proceed due to lack of funds.” She expressed hope that these challenges would be addressed before the general election and thanked the Ambassador for the visit, looking forward to a fruitful interactive session.
Ambassador Isopi responded with delight at the progress made in election matters. “One of the points you raised was the need to support the judiciary in building the capacity of judges on election‑related issues,” she said. “I am pleased to report that we have trained 300 judges, as well as secretaries and support staff, because we consider this crucial for improving and promoting the resolution of election disputes.”
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