The Federal Government, yesterday, dismissed the groundswell of opposition to its suspension of embattled Chief Justice of Nigeria, CJN, Justice Walter Onnoghen, over his non-declaration of assets, insisting that no amount of mass protests would change the course of justice.
The
government also boasted that more Nigerians were in support of the
suspension of the CJN than those opposed to the wielding of the
sledgehammer against the chief justice. Minister of Information, Alhaji
Lai Mohammed, who spoke at a world press conference on the matter in
Abuja, declared: “More Nigerians are with us than are with them on this
issue, going by the feelers that we are getting from across the country.
Those
who want to protest against the suspension of the CJN should feel free
to exercise their rights, within the limits of the law. The minister,
however, took a swipe at Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, and its
sympathisers for using the suspension of the CJN to celebrate corruption
and attempting to make a mockery of the effort of Buhari’s
administration to sanitise the polity.
Mohammed said: “The
opposition, in its reaction, is guilty of engaging in hysteria and for
overheating the polity. Conveniently, they have anchored their failed
campaign for the 2019 election on an issue that is totally unrelated to
the election.
“By their reaction, they have made their tattered
umbrella available for shielding alleged corrupt persons. Their leopard
can never change its spots. PDP is corruption personified and it’s only
reason for seeking a return to office is to complete their looting of
the national treasury. “The attack dogs unleashed by the opposition have
been engaging in incitement and other actions that can threaten law and
order. There is no cause for alarm, as the law enforcement agencies are
alive to their responsibilities.
“Contrary to the cacophony of
voices that have been muddying the waters, the CCT was acting within its
powers in ordering the suspension of Justice Onnoghen as Chief Justice
of Nigeria, and President Muhammadu Buhari was right in carrying out the
order. “The suspension of Justice Onnoghen is a consequence of his
breach of the Code of Conduct for Public Officers and has nothing to do
with the forthcoming elections, neither does it signify the onset of
dictatorship or tyranny as some have insinuated. It amounts to
irresponsible extrapolation to say that the suspension of Justice
Onnoghen is the onset of dictatorship.’’
The minister argued that
rather than blame Buhari for his fate, the embattled CJN should blame
himself for his misfortune. Mohammed said having admitted that he made a
“mistake” by “forgetting” to declare his assets as required of him as a
public officer in Nigeria, Onnoghen should have simply stepped aside as
soon as he realised he had erred in that regard. The minister said it
was also wrong for the embattled justice to have dodged summons by Code
of Conduct Tribunal, CCT, and refused to appear before it, having known
that it was the same court that had exclusive power to try him for the
offence.
Mohammed drew attention to the ruling given by Onnoghen
in 2013 in which he declared that it was only the CCT that had the
exclusive right to try offences bordering on assets of public officers
and no other court in the land. He said: “It is unfortunate that in the
ensuing debate, the talk about due process has overshadowed the talk
about the substance. Procedure cannot or should not trounce substance.
That brings me to the role of the National Judicial Council, NJC.
“Some
have argued that the Justice Onnoghen issue should have been referred
to the NJC to handle. They would have been right if Justice Onnoghen had
been accused of professional misconduct, which is what is within the
purview of the NJC. “The allegations against Justice Onnoghen go beyond
professional misconduct. It is the alleged breach of the Code of Conduct
for Public Officers. And only one body is statutorily empowered to deal
with this: The Code of Conduct Tribunal. “Interestingly, Justice
Onnoghen himself has elucidated on this. In various judgments, he upheld
the provisions of the law concerning the CCT. In one particular
judgment he delivered on July 12, 2013, Justice Onnoghen held that the
CCT had exclusive jurisdiction (emphasis mine) to deal with all
violations contravening any of the provisions of the Code of Conduct
Bureau. “Let me put this in a layman’s language: All breaches of the
Code of Conduct for Public Officers must be handled by the Code of
Conduct Tribunal
Pure and simple. In other words, Justice
Onnoghen’s judgment held that the provisions expressly ousted the powers
of ordinary regular courts in respect of such violations. “In a case
between Ismaeel Ahmed and Nasiru Ahmed, Congress for Progressive Change,
CPC, Chairman of the Kano state chapter of the party, and Independent
National Electoral Commission, INEC, which has been reported by the
media, Onnoghen, while interpreting Paragraph 12 of the Fifth Schedule
of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) as regards CCT’s jurisdiction held
that, “…the said paragraph 12 provides as follows: ‘Any allegation that
a public officer has committed a breach of or has not complied with the
provisions of this Code shall be made to the Code of Conduct Bureau.”
“The judgment, which was delivered at the Supreme Court with suit number
‘SC.279/2012’ before Justices Onnoghen and others, also held that the
provisions of the law are clearly unambiguous. Justice Onnoghen said the
provisions are, “so construed literally meaning that any breaches of
any provisions of the said 5th schedule or matters of noncompliance with
any provisions of the Code shall be made to the Code of Conduct Bureau
that has established its Tribunal with the exclusive jurisdiction to
deal with any violations of any provisions under the Code.’’
“Is
anyone still in doubt that the CCT is the right court to try the
alleged breach of the Code of Conduct for Public Officers levied against
Justice Onnoghen? Is it not clear that challenging the jurisdiction of
the CCT to try him is an abuse of court process by Justice Onnoghen? “As
for those who argued that the CCT is wrong in ordering Justice
Onnoghen’s suspension, are they aware that Justice Onnoghen himself
disagreed with them? In the judgment I referred to earlier, he wrote:
“The tribunal to the exclusion of other courts is also empowered to
impose any punishments as specified under sub-paragraphs (2) (a), (b)
& (c) of paragraph 18 as provided in sub-paragraphs 3 and 4 of
paragraph 18 while appeals shall lie as of right from such decisions to
the Court of Appeal.” In essence, the CCT is right to have directed
Justice Onnoghen’s suspension, and the President did the right thing by
acting on the orders of the CCT.
Needless to say that in many of
the cases of professional misconduct against judges that Justice
Onnoghen has presided over at the NJC; judges have been suspended while
still undergoing trial! “In particular, the opposition has latched on to
it, threatening fire and brimstone and concocting all sorts of
imaginary scenarios and generally muddying the waters. In what I will
call the theatre of the absurd, the main opposition party, the PDP, even
suspended its electioneering campaign for 72 hours! Of course, you must
have seen my reaction to that. ‘’I said there is nothing to suspend in a
campaign that never took off in the first instance! So much for the
opposition’s hysteria. “Today, I have called this press conference to
set the records straight and redirect the discourse. Contrary to what
the opposition and their ilk have been saying, this is not about the
forthcoming elections; neither does the suspension of the CJN signal the
beginning of dictatorship. President Buhari is an avowed democrat, and
this he has proven time and time again. This administration stands firm
on the rule of law.
This whole issue is about the country’s
highest judicial officer, the Chief Justice of Nigeria, being accused of
a breach of the Code of Conduct for Public Officers, and the legal and
moral conundrum surrounding that.” ‘’It is about the suspicious
transactions running into millions of dollars to the suspended CJN’s
personal accounts, all undeclared or improperly declared as required by
law. ‘’It is about the Hon. Justice Onnoghen himself admitting to the
charges that he indeed failed to follow the spirit and letter of the law
in declaring his assets…
Source:- Vanguardngr
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