Post-election litigations outcome and the credibility of the election management institution in Nigeria, 1999-2019

Abstract

Over the years, Nigeria has continued to search for better ways of consolidating her fragile democracy. This study therefore, seeks to examine how the electoral process, particularly post-election litigations have contributed to strengthening democratic governance in Nigeria within the period under study. To achieve this, the study adopted the Liberal Democratic Theory as a theoretical guide and ex-post-facto research design. The Documentary Method of data collection was employed for collecting data while the Qualitative Descriptive Method was used for analyzing the data. The study found that the credibility of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has been truncated at different periods. Again, both the post-election litigations outcome and the credibility of the election management body (INEC) were dependent on the credibility of the leadership of INEC at different periods. In order words, if the leadership of INEC lacks credibility, it will definitely impact on the credibility of the elections, the post-election litigation outcomes and the overall credibility of INEC as an institution. The study therefore recommends that proper scrutinizing of the leadership of INEC be always done before appointment, to ensure that people of integrity are appointed into such office since their actions immensely shape the electoral process.