MINISTER of Information and Culture. Alhaji Lai Mohammed said on Monday that the Federal Government acted within its constitutional powers by suspending the Chief Justice of Nigeria( CJN) Justice Walter Onnonghen.
Mohammed, who made the declaration in Abuja while speaking to newsmen, said that the Government only obeyed the ruling of the ruling of the Code of Conduct Tribunal, which he said was made in accordance with the CCT’s constitutional powers.
The Minister said: “As you would recollect, President Muhammadu Buhari last Friday complied with the order of the Code of Conduct Tribunal, directing the suspension of the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Hon Justice Walter Onnoghen, pending the determination of the cases against him at the Code of Conduct Tribunal and several fora relating to his alleged breach of the Code of Conduct for Public Officers.
“Since then, there have been widespread reactions from within and outside the country. In particular, the opposition has latched on to it, threatening fire and brimstone and concocting all sorts of imaginary scenarios and generally muddying the waters. In what I will call the theatre of the absurd, the main opposition party, the PDP, even suspended its electioneering campaign for 72 hours! Of course, you must have seen my reaction to that. I said there is nothing to suspend in a campaign that never took off in the first instance! So much for the opposition’s hysteria.”
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He frowned at the continuous reference to the breach of due process in handling if the CJN matter, adding that due process should not override substance of a case.
He said: “It is unfortunate that in the ensuing debate, the talk about the due process has overshadowed the talk about the substance. The procedure cannot or should not trounce substance.”
He stated that the argument that Justice ONnoghen should have been referred to the National Judicial Council (NJC) could not hold water because the offences referred to the CCT by the Government were not professional misconducts.
He added: “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.”
The Minister further justified the position of the Federal Government by declaring that the cacophony of voices from the opposition was “muddying the waters,” adding that “the CCT was acting within its powers in ordering the suspension of Justice Onnoghen as Chief Justice of Nigeria, and President Muhammadu Buhari was right in carrying out the order.”
He stated further: “The suspension of Justice Onnoghen is a consequence of his breach of the Code of Conduct for Public Officers and has nothing to do with the forthcoming elections, neither does it signify the onset of dictatorship or tyranny as some have insinuated. It amounts to irresponsible extrapolation to say that the suspension of Justice Onnoghen is the onset of dictatorship.
“A section of the media shirked their agenda-setting role by failing to objectively lead the discourse on the issue of the allegation facing Justice Onnoghen and his subsequent suspension. Certain editorials crossed the acceptable limit of decent discourse and did little or nothing to enlighten the public on the issue at stake.
“The opposition, in its reaction, is guilty of engaging in hysteria and for overheating the polity. Conveniently, they have anchored their failed campaign for the 2019 election on an issue that is totally unrelated to the election. By their reaction, they have made their tattered umbrella available for shielding alleged corrupt persons.
Their leopard can never change its spots: The PDP is corruption personified and it’s the only reason for seeking a return to office is to complete their looting of the national treasury. The attack dogs unleashed by the opposition have been engaging in incitement and other actions that can threaten law and order. There is no cause for alarm, as the law enforcement agencies are alive to their responsibilities.
“The threat of mass action by some groups cannot undermine the course of justice. More Nigerians are with us than those with them on this issue, going by the feelers that we are getting from across the country. Those who want to protest against the suspension of the CJN should feel free to exercise their rights, within the limits of the law.”
The Minister also stated that those who argued that the CCT was wrong in ordering Justice Onnoghen’s suspension, a judgement by Justice Onnoghen himself had disagreed with them.
He quoted a ruling of Justice Onnoghen in which he said:
“The Tribunal to the exclusion of other courts is also empowered to impose any punishments as specified under sub-paragraphs (2) (a), (b) & (c) of paragraph 18 as provided in subparagraphs 3 and 4 of paragraph 18 while appeals shall lie as of right from such decisions to the Court of Appeal.” In essence, the CCT is right to have directed Justice Onnoghen’s suspension, and the President did the right thing by acting on the orders of the CCT. Needless to say that in many of the cases of professional misconduct against judges that Justice Onnoghen has presided over at the NJC, judges have been suspended while still undergoing trial!”
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