• How we saved democracy, by predecessor • Defend yourselves,
Sagay tells arrested judges • Says calls on Amaechi to resign malicious
Acting Chief Justice of
Nigeria (CJN), Justice Walter Onnoghen yesterday, vowed to continue with the
fight against corruption in the judiciary.
The
Guardian Nigeria report continues:
Onnoghen’s
inauguration by President Muhammadu Buhari followed the expiration of the
tenure of Justice Mahmud Mohammed as the CJN yesterday. The new CJN will serve
in an acting capacity till his appointment is confirmed by the National
Assembly.
At
the brief ceremony held in the Presidential Villa, Abuja, President Buhari
urged Justice Onnoghen to use his position to assist the government in tackling
the three most identifiable problems of corruption, economy and physical
insecurity facing the country.
Buhari
noted that Onnoghen was assuming office at a trying time for the country, a
situation he said required the cooperation of the judiciary to develop the
country .
He
stressed the need for the judiciary to specifically assist the executive in
reinvigorating the country in terms of security and managing it efficiently,
while making sure that the economy was resuscitated and the security of doing
business was guaranteed.
Earlier
in his brief remarks after taking the oath of allegiance, Justice Onnoghen
described the moment as overwhelming. He assured the president of the fullest
cooperation of the third arm of government, especially at the existing stage of
the nation’s development and the fight against graft.
While
thanking Buhari for the confidence reposed in him, the acting CJN promised to
continue from where his predecessors had stopped in the struggle to build a
better judiciary for the country.
The
66 year-old Onnoghen who became a Justice of the Supreme Court in 2005, said:
“At this state in our development and thought programme, I assure you of the
fullest cooperation of the third arm of government in the continuation of the
war against corruption and misconduct in the judiciary.
“Where
my predecessors stopped I intend to carry on from there, modify certain areas
but with the general ultimate aim of having a better judiciary befitting the
nation Nigeria. Thank you for the confidence reposed in me and by the grace of
God we shall succeed.”
Justice
Mohammed urged Nigerians to assist the government “to fish out those corrupt
elements within the judiciary.” Fielding questions from State House
correspondents immediately after the ceremony, the former CJN said there was
the need to fight with vigour in order to deliver a clean judiciary for the
nation, and assist in revamping the economy for the interest of Nigerians.
Earlier
yesterday at the valedictory session held in his honour, Justice Mohammed had
reiterated that the independence of judiciary remained a prerequisite for
efficient functioning of the society. He said the judiciary as an institution
must be protected and carefully handled.
His
words: “The independence of the judiciary is a condicio sine qua non for any
civilised society to function effectively and peacefully. It is an institution
which, more than any other, must be protected, sustained and carefully handled.
We must therefore continue to guard the eternal flame of justice in our land in
order to ensure that it is not extinguished.
“Where
the rule of law is absent and due process disregarded, then the sentinel of civilization is missing and I am sure we would not desire to see the results
that such loss causes.”
Despite
the allegations against the third arm of government, Justice Mohammed said he
was proud of the judiciary, noting that Nigeria as a nation owed the sector
gratitude for guarding the nation’s democracy against threatening political
winds.
“Our
nation owes the judiciary a debt of gratitude for standing firm in the face of
contrary winds that threatened to blow our nation’s democracy off course.
“During
the run-up to the 2015 elections, our judicial officers withstood immense
pressure in order to guarantee a level playing field and smooth transition of
government, which ensured that we were spared a re-enactment of the June 12
saga.
“In
fact, the courts, thus securing the electoral process, disallowed so many
frivolous matters aimed at truncating the electoral process.
“I
must particularly commend the Supreme Court for refusing to be intimidated or
influenced by any candidate or political party, and I make no apologies for the
firm stand that we took in our decisions. I am proud to be a part of the
Supreme Court which refused to be cowered into truncating the electoral
process. I am proud to have headed this noble arm of government and steering it
through some very stormy waters.
“I
am proud of the Nigerian judiciary. Indeed, the need to protect the
institutions of the judiciary from undue influence was a key concern of mine
during my tenure,” the former CJN said.
Meanwhile,
the Chairman of the Presidential Advisory Committee against Corruption, Prof.
Itse Sagay (SAN) yesterday said that judges arrested for corruption should
defend themselves and not accuse others of persecuting them. Sagay’s position
was contained in a statement he issued yesterday in response to “frequent
enquiries by members of the press.”
The
statement read: “Two Justices of the Supreme Court affected by the DSS raids of
Saturday 8th October, 2016, have been quoted as stating that Hon. Minister of
Transport, Mr. Rotimi Chibuike Amaechi once attempted to induce them to favour
the APC in an election petition. This outburst by the two justices is
surprising, considering that it is totally unrelated to be raids of their
premises, their arrest and subsequent charges before our courts. Men of that
status should not indulge in such diversionary activities in the midst of grave
and ominous charges facing them. I would have thought that they would use
the time at their disposal to prepare their defences against the serious
charges they are facing.
“In
any case, given their statuses as Supreme Court Justices, even in the middle of
the adversity confronting them, they should not have engaged in a distraction
totally incompatible with the dignity and respect that their high offices
attract.
“It
is demeaning for them to abandon their legitimate defence in order to smear a
high official of the Buhari government, which latter, they probably consider to
be the source of their predicaments. Mere allegations cannot have enough
weight to affect the position of such a high official as Amaechi, otherwise
knowing the disposition of Nigerians for putting people down, no office holder
will be safe in this country. It is therefore improper and ridiculous to
compare the position of the justices in whose houses millions of naira and
hundreds of thousands of dollars were allegedly recovered, to that of Amaechi
against whom there is only the mere ipse dixit of the judges.
“This
sudden anti-Amaechi narrative is consistent with the objectives and interests
of the chief promoters and funders of judicial corruption during election
petitions. These powerful opposition politicians are well known. To
be more specific, they are from Rivers and Akwa Ibom States. They are the
ones who financed judicial corruptions and brought that great institution, the
Judiciary, to its knees, after the 2015 elections.
“These
allegations are intended to undermine and weaken the Buhari Federal Government,
by depriving it of the service, input, ideas and productivity of some of its
brightest stars. This is intended to set the stage for charging the
government with ineffectiveness and cluelessness. In other words, it is
an attempt to reduce the image and perception of this Federal Government to the
low level of their own late and unlamented government.
“Therefore, the call for
Amaechi to step down is malicious and vindictive. It should be ignored
with complete ignominy.”
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