President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Mr. Yakubu Chonoko Maikyau, SAN, has called for the live broadcast of the proceedings of the 2023 Presidential Election Petition Tribunal in the interest of openness, justice, transparency and trust in the judiciary.

He made the call in a statement issued in Abuja on Saturday.

Candidates of the Labour Party and the Peoples Democratic Party – Peter Obi and Atiku Abubakar respectively – are both challenging the results of the 2023 presidential election held on February 25, 2023 and which produced Sen. Bola Ahmed Tinubu of the ruling All Progressives Congress as President-elect.

The aftermath of the elections have been the subject of controversy regarding compliance with the Electoral Act as to electronic transmission of results among other issues.

There was a consensus among Observers that the turnout of the elections were lower than witnessed in past elections.

The NBA President noted that “a live telecast is in the interest of the people of Nigeria. Section 36 (1) and (3) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria provides that judicial proceedings should be conducted in public.”

“Providing public access to the proceedings would meet the aspirations of the public to participate in the process,” he further said.