A well respected Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Afe Babalola, has said that the proposed trial for Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Walter Onnoghen, is illegal.
The legal giant said this in a statement entitled, Proposed arraignment of the Hon Justice Walter Onnoghen: Again, I say two wrongs do not make a right
He said that the idea of prosecuting the Judge over failure to declare his assets is a denigration of the country’s Judiciary and Constitution.”
Babalola said in the statement: “I am of the view that the Constitution requires that any infraction by the said judges be firstly investigated and resolved by the National Judicial Council, to the exclusion of any other body or authority.”
Babalola referred to the judgement the Court of Appeal made in Nganjiwa v Federal Republic of Nigeria and he said the decision hadn’t been set aside and “I therefore see no justification for the decision to arraign the CJN before the CCT.”
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“Again, the point must be made clear that the Constitution clearly provides for the procedure with which the CJN can be removed from office.
“Section 292 (1)(a)(i) and 292 (1)(b) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (As Amended) addressed it.” he argued.
“It becomes more worrying to learn that, aside from laying the proposed charges, the prosecution has also filed an application for an order directing the CJN to recuse himself from office pending the conclusion of the trial.”
Afe Babalola added: “By proceeding as proposed, the government is unwittingly or, perhaps, deliberately, creating a wrong impression in the minds of millions of Nigerians that the Judiciary is a criminal organisation.
“For the sake of our democracy, this is a misconception that must not be allowed to fester.
“No country, no matter how well intentioned its political leaders are, can aspire to greatness if its judicial arm is denigrated and held in contempt.
“While the Judiciary itself must be awake to its huge responsibilities, its efforts in this regard will surely not be helped by the erosion of its independence,”