Nigerian citizens of voting age who are currently residing in the United Kingdom and other parts of the world have taken President Muhammadu Buhari and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to a Federal High Court in Abuja in an effort to have their constitutional right to vote in the general elections of 2023 enforced.
They are asking the court to prevent Buhari and INEC from moving further with the electioneering process for the 2023 election until INEC’s voter register and bio-database are upgraded to include them as registered voters. They want this to happen before the 2023 election.
Barrister Chikwe Nkemnacho and Kenneth Azubuike Nkemnacho, who both currently reside in the United Kingdom, are the ones who initiated the legal action on behalf of other Nigerians living in the diaspora around the world.
In the lawsuit that was brought on their behalf by Augustine Temfeh-Nkemnacho, they ask the court to declare that they have the right to participate in the electoral process by registering to vote in 2023 and in all elections worldwide, in accordance with sections 13, and 14, 42, and 17 of the 1999 Constitution. This request is made in light of the fact that Augustine Temfeh-Nkemnacho brought the lawsuit on their behalf.
The plaintiffs also asked for the court to issue another statement saying that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) still has sufficient time to comply with provisions 13, 14, and 15 of the Constitution of 1999.
They stated that the fundamental rights guaranteed to them by the Constitution of 1999 would be breached if they were denied the ability to vote in elections beginning in 2023 and continuing in successive years.
According to Justice Inyang Edem Ekwo, who has been tasked with hearing the case, the defendants’ responses need to be submitted on January 19, 2023.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), the Chairman of INEC, the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, and the Federal Republic of Nigeria are the four parties named as defendants in the lawsuit. The defendants are listed in this order.
