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At the Presidential Election Petitions Court began its sitting on Monday, ESTHER BLACKSON writes that opposition parties’ demand for a live broadcast of the court proceedings will mark the first legal battle
One of the issues that the Presidential Election Petitions Court will first attend to is the demand by the opposition parties for a live broadcast of its proceedings.
The Peoples Democratic Party presidential candidate, former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, and his Labour Party counterpart, Peter Obi, in the suits they filed against the victory of the All Progressive Congress standard bearer, Bola Tinubu, demanded the live broadcast.
Commenting on the request for a live broadcast, Adegoke SAN said the demand was improper.
He stated, “There is a need for justice to be done and to be seen as being done, but when court proceedings are being subjected to public hearings…a lot of things happen in court that the majority of people don’t understand because there are rules regulating proceedings. In a substantially illiterate society like ours, it is going to constitute a lot of nuisance.”
He argued that the right to information should not be an unrestricted licence to expose the judiciary to unnecessary scrutiny by unlearned communities who may want to project their biases and sentiments in the ongoing petition proceeding.
“Anybody who wants to have a better feel of the proceedings should attend the court sitting. What Nigerians will do with it will be an embarrassment,” he said.
On his part, a foremost lawyer, Jiti Ogunye, stated that the request for telecast by Atiku Abubakar and PDP was an extraneous matter and added nothing to the issue at hand.
He said the courtroom was not a campaign ground or a caucus meeting adding that the independence of the judiciary cut deeper than mere interference in the administration of justice.
He argued that the court of law and tribunals had rules of courts and practice directions that govern the conduct of proceedings.
He said the amplification of allowing access to the court is not done whimsically, under the rule of the thumb or because of the asking.
“A court proceeding is solemn and sober exercise. It is not a football match, not a live crusade or live concert.”
He said the advancement in technology which included the interactive dimension allowing comments while the proceeding is ongoing would interfere with the business of the court.
“ That kind of advance in technology will allow, for example, a live telecast of the proceeding of the court to be interfered with by members of the public…to insert their own biases and views which are unrefined mostly and have nothing to do in law…which will get back to the judges. It is not a one-day event.”
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