Human rights lawyer, Femi Falana, has asked the All Progressives Congress and the People’s Democratic Party, PDP, to prove their innocence against terrorism allegations levelled against them by a Canadian federal court.
In a statement on Monday, the Senior Advocate of Nigeria, SAN, said the parties must address the grave issues raised in the judgement rather than dismissing the pronouncements.
Recall that Justice Phuong Ngo had ruled that Nigeria’s two dominant parties, “use violence, coercion and subversion of democratic institutions in their bid to acquire political power”.
The rights activist also warned that the verdict carried far-reaching implications, pointing out that under Nigeria’s Terrorism [Prevention and Prohibition] Act 2022, terrorism is defined as the use of violence, intimidation, or coercive tactics with political or ideological motives.
According to him, these actions are frequently observed during elections in the country.
“It is common knowledge that APC and PDP rig elections and announce fake results with the assistance of armed thugs, police and military personnel,” Mr Falana said.
He added that electoral processes in Nigeria have often been marred by violence, killings, and voter intimidation without perpetrators facing justice.
He also criticised the parties’ immediate responses to the ruling, noting that while the APC described the Canadian judge as “ignorant” and the PDP labelled the decision “mischievous”, both failed to tackle the substantive issues.
“Instead of abusing the Canadian judge, the APC and PDP should urgently adopt legal measures to prove that they are not terrorist organisations,” he said.
Mr Falana further urged the Federal Government to act swiftly by engaging immigration lawyers to mitigate the potential consequences of the ruling.
“If the ruling is registered in the United States, United Kingdom, France and elsewhere, members of the APC and PDP may have their visas revoked and may be deported,” he cautioned.
He stressed that mere diplomatic protests to Canadian authorities would not undo the judgement, insisting that Nigerian judges and security agencies must hold political parties accountable to constitutional and legal standards, particularly during elections.
“The federal government should hire immigration lawyers to take urgent action to remove the stigma of infamy contained in the judgement. The collateral damage will certainly affect other citizens since the government of their homeland has been sponsored by two terrorist political parties,” Mr Falana warned.
The senior lawyer also called for strict enforcement of the Electoral Act and prosecution of election offenders, arguing that restoring credibility to Nigeria’s democratic processes is the only way to protect its global image.
