By Solomon OKPO
The Supreme Court of Nigeria has affirmed that civil servants are constitutionally entitled to participate in partisan politics, including joining political parties, effectively faulting restrictive provisions in the Public Service Rules (PSR).
This clarification follows renewed public attention to the apex court’s decision in INEC v. Balarabe Musa & Others (2003) 10 WRN 1, in which the court held that limitations imposed by the Civil Service Rules on political participation violate the 1999 Constitution.
In a circular dated May 5, 2022, the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation acknowledged that her office had been inundated with requests seeking clarification on the scope and effect of the Supreme Court judgment. While the memo directed civil servants to observe the Public Service Rules (2008 Edition) on partisan politics, it also referenced the binding authority of the apex court’s decision.
Delivering the leading judgment, Justice Ayoola, JSC, held that there is no justification in a democratic society whether in the interest of defence, public safety, public order, public morality, or public health to prohibit a member of the public or civil service from being registered as a member of a political party. He ruled that the argument seeking to justify such restrictions under Section 45(1)(a) of the Constitution as a derogation from Section 40 was erroneous and unsustainable.
Justice Ayoola emphasized that Section 40 of the 1999 Constitution guarantees freedom of assembly and association and that this right extends to civil servants without exception.
In a concurring judgment, the then Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Mohammed Uwais, underscored the clarity of the constitutional provision.
He stated that Section 40 “allows every person, including public office holders and civil servants, the freedom to assemble freely and associate with other persons to form or belong to any political party or trade union or any other association for the protection of his interest,” stressing that the Constitution makes no exemption limiting its application to civil servants or public officers.
The ruling has significant implications for Nigeria’s democratic space, reinforcing constitutional supremacy over administrative rules and affirming that civil servants, like all citizens, retain fundamental political rights guaranteed by the Constitution.
