By Abdulrasaq Kamaldeen
Ehsan Sehgal once said, “The judiciary is such a coin that has justice and injustice at its two sides. Accordingly, one, who wins, feels justice; whereas, one, who loses, feels injustice…”
Lending credence to this: It’s a redundant and trepidation belief that the judiciary is full of corrupt minds because one’s wishes were not fulfilled. The drummer takes the blame for the drum’s sounds, not the maker, likewise, the dancer follows the sound of the drum. Nigerians perceive the act of judiciary worthy to be blamed for exercising the duty shouldered on them.
It is not new anymore. Nigerians believe that the judiciary is the most corrupt arm of government while interpreting the enacted law—they forget who makes a law that regulates their affairs, and the judiciary is only responsible for interpreting the law enacted by the legislature. They judge according to what is brought to them by using different canons of interpretation on the structured circumstances of enacting statute; they are neither intruders nor interlopers, meddlesome or whatever name you deem fit. They are constitutionally exercising their works.
Recall that the candidates of the opposition parties; Peter Gregory Obi of the Labour Party (LP), Abubakar Atiku of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), and others rejected the decision of the Election Tribunal and appealed to the Court of Appeal to invalidate the decision of Election Tribunal by declaring President Bola Ahmed Tinubu of All Progressive Congress (APC) as the winner of the 2023 Presidential general election, concluded in February.
Petitions were raised for the determination of the case before the court. Peter Gregory Obi & others raised a dispute against the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) & three others. While INEC was sued by the Allied People’s Movement over the presidential election result. Lastly, the matter between Abubakar Atiku and INEC & two others.
Meanwhile, different thoughts have been spewing out since the election tribunal justices delivered judgment on Wednesday, 6th September on the case before them. Several people tagged the judiciary as a corrupt body. The worst part is that there is a cartoon picture that taunts the honor and privilege of the judiciary. The cartoon exhibits the image of Tinubu with improbable text, which reads: “My love, why not drop this sword let me take you shopping!” This is rubbish to the face of the Judiciary!
Some pinheaded set of people have the guts to burn the Constitution just because their desire was not achieved. Judiciary belongs to everyone and deems fit to give judgment to anyone that deserves it; one’s sentiment and desire can not sway justice from being prevailed.
I could not imagine, half-baked Twitter users tagged the judiciary as a corrupt body when the judgment was delivered. Look, the judiciary is so occupied defending Tinubu, if not his lawyer. It is an untrue and loathing word. The act of the judiciary can be questioned but it is not to the extent of throwing slanderous statements against them just for your sentiment.
Justice is abstract—no one can depict its context, any favoritism in a judgment is no more a justice. One will feel ashamed and emotionally damaged when judgment turns against him, prophecies that it will favor him. Aristotle once said, “To treat equal things unequally, and to treat unequal things equally is an apotheosis of injustice.”