The House of Representatives has advanced a bill seeking to make the Court of Appeal the final authority in governorship election petitions, moving to eliminate Supreme Court reviews in such cases.
The proposed legislation, sponsored by Nnamdi Ezechi, who represents the Ndokwa East/Ndokwa West/Ukwuani Federal Constituency of Delta State, aims to amend Section 246 of the 1999 Constitution.
Currently, the constitution states that the Court of Appeal’s decisions are final only for National Assembly and State House of Assembly election petitions.
Ezechi’s bill, which has now passed its second reading, seeks to extend this finality to governorship election disputes.
During its first reading in 2024, Ezechi emphasized that the amendment would reduce delays and cut down the high cost of post-election litigation.
If enacted, the law would prevent governorship election disputes from reaching the Supreme Court—a significant shift from the existing process.
The move comes in response to several high-profile cases where appellate court decisions on governorship elections were overturned by the Supreme Court, raising concerns about prolonged election disputes.
In 2023, the tribunal and the Court of Appeal nullified the election of Caleb Mutfwang of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as governor of Plateau State.
However, in January 2024, the Supreme Court reversed the ruling and reinstated Mutfwang.
Similarly, Abba Yusuf’s election as governor of Kano State was annulled by both the tribunal and the appellate court, but the Supreme Court later overturned the decisions, reinstating him.
If passed into law, the bill would reshape Nigeria’s electoral litigation process, making the Court of Appeal the highest judicial body for determining the fate of governorship elections.
This could bring faster resolution to election disputes and reduce the political uncertainty associated with prolonged legal battles.
With the bill now at the committee stage, lawmakers will deliberate further before it proceeds to the next legislative step.
However, given the significance of constitutional amendments, the proposal will require approval from both the National Assembly and at least two-thirds of Nigeria’s 36 state legislatures before becoming law.
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