By Marcus Fatunmole (Abuja)
Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, has advised the Federal Government to withdraw its charges against Chief Justice of the Federation {CJN) Mr. Walter Onnoghen, and apologize to the nation’s judiciary.
Ekweremadu said prosecuting the CJN by the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) at the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) is a dangerous path for the nation.
In a statement signed by his Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Uche Anichukwu, the lawmaker said the action is “extremely dangerous for the nation’s democracy.”
Onnoghen is being tried on a six-count for failing to, and partial declaration of his assets.
Among others, he is accused of running foreign accounts used for transacting foreign currrencies.
The CJN is the first head of the nation’s federal judiciary to be accused of corruption since the nation returned to democracy two decades ago.
His trial follows similar experience of the incumbent Senate President, Bukola Saraki, who stood trial for about two years over similar accusations.
Saraki later won at the Supreme Court, after months of record-breaking litigations.
Though the trial could not commence on Monday, as the case was adjourned till Tuesday January 22, it is not clear if the Presidency through President Muhammadu Buhari will direct the CCB to stop the Onnoghen’s arraignment as being advocated by many Nigerians, especially legal experts.
The Nigeria Bar Association (NBA) on Saturday condemned the CJN’s arraignment in a statement.
Apart from Onnoghen, the president of Nigeria Bar Association (NBA), Paul Usoro, is facing criminal charges in court. He is being tried by the Nigerian government.
Leading legal icons across the nation, including 90 lawyers that represented the CJN in court on Monday, have independently opposed Onnoghen’s trial, claiming it would undermine the judiciary, especially as the 2019 general elections kick-off in about a month.
Though Onnoghen didn’t appear in court on Monday, his lawyers said the CCT lacked jurisdiction to try him. They also said he wasn’t appropriately served by the court.
For Ekweremadu in his statement, the executive arm of government must “eschew every form of intimidation against other arms of government, especially their leaderships, to enable them play their constitutional roles in the overall interest of the nation.”
He noted that the integrity of the judiciary remained intact despite obvious constraints.
“He said: ‘I consider the charges against the Chief Justice of Nigeria, His Lordship, Justice Walter Onnoghen, as ill-advised and dangerous, especially after similar attempts at the leadership of the National Assembly failed.
“This is extremely dangerous for democracy and can only divide the country further as well as alienate us as country very low in upholding the rule of law and independence of the judiciary.
“I advice the Attorney General of the Federation to immediately withdraw the charges and apologise to the judiciary. We certainly can’t travel this road”.
