An Enugu judge has warned that the growing trend of “judicialisation” in West African elections is eroding citizens’ democratic agency by replacing voters with courts.
The judge, speaking in Enugu, Nigeria, argued that when courts step in to resolve electoral disputes, they effectively take the place of the electorate, leaving voters without a direct say in the outcome.
According to the judge, this shift undermines the core principle of democracy, which rests on the active participation of citizens in choosing their leaders.
In West Africa, electoral disputes frequently reach the judiciary, and the judge’s warning highlights the risk that such interventions could become a substitute for the democratic process itself.
These remarks were reported by Punch Nigeria.
<small>Source: Punch Nigeria — read the original story there.</small>