Situating Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) in the Political Sphere: Thoughts on Mechanisms for Pre-Election Political Dispute Resolution in Nigeria

Abstract

In over seventy-six years of election history in Nigeria, the country is yet to conduct an election that has not been contested. It does appear that the level of animosity that is exhibited during political activities is so high that most participants refuse to accept that someone must win while another loses. The culture has since evolved in Nigeria that politicians tend to assume that it was natural to win by all means and allow the other party contest the outcome at the courts. This attitude is reflected in the number of pre-election disputes that have come up and remain in litigation even after the elected and sworn party had exhausted tenure. The current Election Management Body in Nigeria, the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC has observed that pre-election disputes seem to impact on its ability to deliver free and fair elections. It is now considering influencing political parities in the country to institutionalize Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) mechanisms to deal with pre-election disputes. How this may eventually work out will depend on how Nigeria politicians understand and appreciate the workings of ADR. This paper examines the available ADR mechanisms that could be deployed in the aid of pre-election political disputes in Nigeria especially given the country’s volatile politics and palpable anxieties of minorities about domination by so-called political majorities.