Oba Maduabuchi: Political Parties Should Strengthen Legal Departments Ahead Of 2027 Elections
Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Oba Maduabuchi, has urged political parties to strengthen their legal departments ahead of the 2027 general elections, warning that poor legal advice could result in costly electoral mistakes and exclusion from the electoral process.
Speaking during an interview with Arise News on Thursday, Maduabuchi said the Court of Appeal’s decision restoring the Independent National Electoral Commission’s (INEC) authority over its election guidelines should serve as a lesson for political parties to rely on competent legal counsel that understands the Constitution rather than political considerations.
He argued that political parties should appoint lawyers who prioritise the law over political interests.
“Yes, of course, they have to strengthen their legal departments. You don’t use lawyers who are politicians. There are lawyers who will tell you something which will be sweet to your ears,” he said.
According to him, lawyers with a sound understanding of constitutional law would provide accurate guidance that could prevent parties from making avoidable mistakes.
“But if you have a lawyer that will look you in the face and say, my friend, you are wrong. You cannot have a problem like that. You would have read the constitution, you would interpret it properly and advise you this is what you need to do,” he said.
Maduabuchi also criticised lawyers who rely on court manoeuvres rather than legal merit, saying political parties should instead seek advisers who “believe in knowing the law.”
“It goes without saying that there are lawyers who know the judges more than they know the law,” he said.
Maduabuchi said political parties could avoid similar setbacks in future elections by improving the quality of legal advice available to them and ensuring their legal teams are guided by the law rather than political considerations.
“So they should strengthen their legal departments, then they won’t have problems like this,” he said.
He maintained that competent legal advice would have led political parties to comply with INEC’s directives pending judicial clarification.
“If I was the legal advisor of any political party, whether right or wrong, I would tell them to comply while we wait for what the courts will say,” he said.
He concluded by reiterating that stronger legal departments would help political parties avoid similar disputes in future elections.
“So let them go and have better legal departments.”
Maduabuchi concluded that political parties should prioritise competent legal counsel and compliance with INEC’s directives to avoid similar challenges in future elections.
Ademide Adebayo
Follow us on: