Justice Mobolaji Olajuwon of the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja, on Monday, stopped the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from closing the voter registration on June 30, 2022.
The court granted the order of interim injunction on the hearing of an argument on motion ex parte brought by the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP).
Recall that SERAP and 185 other concerned Nigerians had early this month, approached the court against INEC asking the court to “declare unconstitutional, illegal, and incompatible with international standards, the failure of the electoral body to extend the deadline for voter registration to allow eligible Nigerians to exercise their rights.”
SERAP in the matter is asking the court for “an order restraining INEC, its agents, privies, assigns, or any other person(s) claiming through it from discontinuing the continuous voters’ registration exercise from the 30th June 2022 or any other date pending the hearing and determination of the motion on notice.”
The suit was adjourned till June 29, 2022, for the hearing of the Motion on Notice for interlocutory injunction.
SERAP sued INEC following the Commission’s decision to extend the deadline for the conduct of primaries by political parties by six days, from June 3 to June 9.
The group said the commission, however, failed to also extend the online pre-registration which ended May 30 2022 and the Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) ending 30 June 2022.
According to the suit number, FHC/L/CS/1034/2022 filed at the Federal High Court, Lagos, but transferred to Abuja, SERAP wants the court to determine “whether the failure of INEC to extend the deadline for voter registration is not a violation of Nigerian Constitution, 1999 [as amended], the Electoral Act, and international standards.”
According to SERAP, what they want from the court was for “a declaration that the failure of INEC to extend the deadline for voter registration is a violation of eligible Nigerians’ rights to participate freely in their own government, equality and equal protection.
“An order of mandamus to direct and compel INEC to extend voter registration by a minimum of three months and take effective measures to ensure that eligible Nigerians are able to register to exercise their right to vote in the 2023 general elections.”