Our executive arm lacks respect for court orders – Okere

Barrister Kingdom Okere, a human rights lawyer, activist and social crusader is the founder/President of an NGO; Kingdom Human Rights Foundation International.
In this interview with KEHINDE OSASONA, he gives an insight into lingering constitutional crisis between the executive and the legislature, his passion for ‘probono legal services’ and why he frowns at disobedience of court orders by the executive

My passion for probono services Kingdom Human Rights Foundation International; is a Non-governmental human rights organization which was founded to provide pure ‘probono legal services’ to the downtrodden of Nigeria, and to more importantly, challenge public interest matters.
Thankfully, since we started challenging public interest matters for the past three years, several lawyers have joined us and today, our organization is reputed to have filed over fifty cases against the Federal Government of Nigeria challenging certain illegalities, abnormalities, corruption cases.
The hallmark of all the public interest matters we have challenged was the matter against the Federal Republic of Nigeria over the criminal, illegal and unconstitutional extension of tenure of the former Chairman and member of Code of Conduct Bureau, Mr Sam Shaba.
We challenge it in court unilaterally and the court saw reasons to our arguments and he was sacked eventually.
After that, we wrote letter to the President demanding that the judgment of the court be implemented immediately and the then acting President, and Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Professor Yemi Osinbajo did not hesitate in doing just that.
On April 25 judgment nullifying election reordering by an Abuja Division of the Court of Appeal It was an excellent judgment by the five-man panel led by President, Appeal Court, Justice Zainab Bulkachuwa.
Don’t also forget that the court also made a definite pronouncement to the effect that a bill could not be challenged in court until it became an Act I saw it coming when Accord Party said it was aggrieved and rushed to court to stop the National Assembly from sitting to override a legislative procedure which by all standard, cannot be stopped by any court of law.
Such procedures can only end all by itself or be stopped by the operation of law and be reintroduced in the next Assembly; or better still, a contentious issue like that if handled well, could as well sail through via proper legislative lobbying of oppositions or aggrieved parties as it is done in America.
Coming back to the issue of judgment, my client and I are heading to Supreme Court over that election sequence, where we have filed an application seeking leave to appeal the judgment because our application to be joined as a party at the Federal High Court was refused, but we allowed the court to proceed because we are not in the matter to distract the court, rather, we actually wanted to join and to challenge the merit of the suit.
We have also filed an application where we intend to seek leave to appeal an unjust ruling against us at the Supreme Court.
But then, while that was the situation with our effort to be joined in the suit, the Court of Appeal delivered a judgment on the matter.
First of all, the judgment is in two parts; I agree with the Court of Appeal in the part of the judgment where they held totally that the National Assembly has the constitutional powers to make laws which includes either enacting a fresh law or amending an electoral Act or amending the Constitution to set election sequence.
And again, that it has not become an Act cannot be challenged.
It was a brilliant and very courageous judgment by the Court of Appeal.
As a matter of fact, it has yet again re-emphasised the call for an independent judicial arm of government in the country.
So now, that aspect of the judgment was brilliant, total and commendable.
There are three instances: A bill can either become a law or a bill can decide to be a law.
They are all contained in our brief of arguments which we were not given opportunity to argue at the Court of Appeal and also at the other court.
At one of the court sessions, I represented Action Peoples’ Party, one of the newly registered and recognised political parties in the country as legal counsel and I filed an application on behalf of the party in that regards.
We had wanted to argue in that election sequence matter, and make our position known from the angle of the law but it was not to be.
There are legislative procedures under which a bill becomes law or an Act of the National Assembly.
However, it should be known that the President, under Section 58 sub-section 1,2,3,4 and 5 of the 1999 Constitution can assent to the bill to become law.
If the President assents it, it automatically becomes law and changes from a bill as passed to an Act of the National Assembly.
At the same time, he posses the right to decline an assent, but that does not stop the legislative process, it is continuation until that bill becomes law or dies as the case may be as contained in Section 58 sub-section 5.
Election re-ordering and rising constitutional crisis I do not see any constitutional crisis or even power tussle in all of these because the provisions of the constitution are clearly expressed in the constitution, and if anybody feels aggrieved with any section of the constitution as to the powers, duties and responsibilities of any of the arms of government, let him or her approach the court for interpretation of that section of the constitution.
Meanwhile, the parties probably by now should be heading for the Supreme Court for final determination of the matter.
Nevertheless, I would have thought that the leadership of the national assembly would have made judicious use of their legal departments to advise them appropriately for possible truce before the matter becomes protracted.
The constitution has given the Supreme Court of Nigeria the original jurisdiction to entertain matters between National Assembly and the executive arm of government or the President as the case may be.
I think NASS legal department goofed by not seeking judicial interpretation at the Supreme Court on whether or not the President can withdraw assent and save us all the legal brawl, but they did not and that was a minus on their part.
On disobedience of courts orders in the country That court orders are not being obeyed in the country ridicules the court, and it only points to the fact that it is either the Attorney-General is incompetent or has allowed his political affiliation and influence to affect his official duties.
Years past, people like my late mentor, Chief Gani Fawehinmi, SAN of blessed memory, severally called for the separation of the office of the Attorney-General and the Minister of justice; such that Minister of justice would just be a political appointee appointed by the President who advises him on legal matters, while the AGF is the chief law officer of the federation that defends every matter against the federal government and sue every matter and all legal issue including the effect of disobedience to court orders.
I recall the time our Foundation went to court about three months ago and got an interim order ordering JOHESU(Joint Health Sectors Union) to go back to work when facts emanated that over a thousand Nigerians have died as a result of their over one and a half month strike.
We sued JOHESU at the National Industrial Court and the court was gracious enough by asking them to go back to work, and they resumed negotiation with the federal government.
Today, Nigerians continues to enjoy health services nationwide courtesy of our NGO.
In essence, the executive arm of government for me has laid a bad precedent on how to disobey court orders.
For instance, look at the case of Dasuki, El-Zaky and a host of others still being holed up in detention even after a competent court of law has ordered for their release.
Why is it so difficult to obey an order of a court of competence jurisdiction? Tell me, when federal government is not obeying court orders, how do you think ordinary Nigerians will obey? I think the AGF should advise the President accordingly in this respect.

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