SAN FRANCISCO, October 21, (THEWILL) – The National Judicial Council (NJC) has rejected the suggestion by the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) for the suspension of serving judges who were among the seven arrested by the Department of State Service (DSS) between October 8 and 9 on allegations of corruption.
The NBA President, Abubakar Mahmud (SAN) had, at a function in Abuja on Thursday, urged the affected judges to either be sent on compulsory suspension or cease to exercise their judicial powers until their innocence was proved.
“We therefore strongly recommend that, without prejudice to the innocence or otherwise of the Judges involved in the ongoing investigations, they should recuse themselves from further judicial functions or required to proceed on compulsory leave until their innocence is fully and completely established or until the conclusion of all judicial or disciplinary proceedings,” Mahmud had said.
However, the NJC, in a statement, on Friday, by its Acting Director, Information, Soji Oye, insisted that the NBA was wrong in calling for the judges’ suspension having earlier supported the council’s decision to condemn the arrest, which it described as an attempt to cow the Judiciary.
The statement declared that it was wrong for the serving judges to be suspended without investigating the petition accusing the affected judges of certain acts of misconduct adding that the council could only exercise its disciplinary powers over judicial officers where due processes were complied with.
“Thus, the current position of the Nigerian Bar Association vis-à-vis its recommendation that the affected judicial officers involved in the on-going investigation of Judicial Officers by the DSS, be requested to proceed on compulsory leave until the conclusion of all disciplinary proceedings against them, is unacceptable to the NJC; as it breaches the 2014 Revised Judicial Discipline Regulations formulated by NJC pursuant to Section 160 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, as amended,” the statement by NJC read.
“It is to be reiterated also that by the provisions of Section 158 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, as amended, NJC shall not be subject to the direction or control of any other authority or person while exercising its disciplinary power of control over Judicial Officers in the Federation.
“The members of the public are hereby informed that the mechanism that will determine a judicial officer to be directed or requested to proceed on compulsory leave or be suspended from office, is a disciplinary power that NJC can only exercise after initiating disciplinary proceeding on the complaint or petition forwarded against the Judge, after he has been found culpable.
“Therefore, to act on the recommendation of the NBA, it is not only contrary to the provisions of Section 158 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, as amended, but it means NJC will direct any judicial officer that has been petitioned even if the allegations contained therein are frivolous and baseless, to proceed on compulsory leave or be suspended from office without complying with the rule of law.”
Story by Oputah David
