The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, has accused the suspended Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Walter Onneghen of dodging court processes in order to frustrate his case before the Code of Conduct Tribunal.
President Muhammadu Buhari had last Friday suspended Onnoghen pending the determination of the cases against him at the Code of Conduct Tribunal. Buhari, who hinged his action on the order of CCT, had since sworn in Justice Tanko Mohammed as the acting CJN.
However, there have been torrents of condemnation against the action of the president as some lawyers and the opposition parties described it as dictatorial.
Addressing a press conference in Abuja, Mohammed also accused the embattled CJN of abusing his office by filling frivolous applications in a bid to also frustrate his case at the CCT.
He, however, refuted the allegation that the federal government is hell-bent on muzzling the judiciary with Onnoghen’s suspension, just as he declared that the Code of Conduct Bureau is created for all public servants.
Mohammed also justified the CJN’s suspension, arguing that the president acted on order of the CCT.
He said: “Please, remember that Justice Onnoghen has been given the opportunity of fair hearing, but he has been abusing his position and the judicial process by filing frivolous applications and even dodging service of process
“This issue has nothing to do with the executive arm trying to muzzle the judiciary. This is a clear court case and the government who believes in the rule of law, acted upon it.
“The Code of Conduct Bureau is for all the public officers, whether you are a judge, a lawyer, or an Accountant in the civil service or in the ministry. It does not have exclusion for judges’’.
The minister also claimed that the suspension of the CJN did not have anything to do with the forthcoming elections, adding that his suspension is not a threat to democracy.
“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!
“Still talking of the big picture, some have suggested that the suspension of Justice Onnoghen is a threat to our democracy or even the country’s very existence. They are wrong.
“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 judgement 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’’, he said
