Though 2011 has come and gone, legal pundits believe that the year marked the turning point in the history of the country’s judicial system on grouds of unprecedented intrigues, drama and politics in the third arm of government. PAUL DADA writes.
At no time in the history of Nigeria has the judiciary suffered an image problem than this outgoing 2011.
Feelers from some quarters seem to indicate that some Nigerians do not believe that the judiciary cannot be fully relied on to fairly adjudicate in matters. Judges have been accused of corruption. The events leading to the controversial removal of the Suspended President of the Court of Apeal (PCA), Justice Ayo Salami, lends credence to this suspicion.
Even the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Dahiru Musdapher, admitted during his swearing-in that there was rot in the judiciary.
The CJN said, “The downturn in the society has not left the judiciary alone, no doubt about it but God willing, we will do everything to ensure that things are better in the judiciary.
“We will face the challenge squarely and make sure that the judiciary becomes one of the best in the world”.
The situation in the judiciary becomes more painful when one realises that many Nigerians had been full of praises before this time for this third arm of government.
They were especially happy for the role of the election petitions tribunals and the appellate court played in removing politicians who occupied positions via stolen votes and putting genuine election winners in office.
The controversial removal of Salami was one of the major things that shook? the faith of Nigerians.
It will remain one crisis that will forever remain in the memories of Nigerians for it has put the judiciary on trial in the court of public opinion. And the verdict of most commentators is that the judiciary is rotten, corrupt and fraught with unethical conducts and decisions.
The problem started when Justice Salami screamed blue murder about the decision of the CJN to “elevate” him to the Supreme Court. Salami revealed that this was not a genuine promotion but an attempt by the former CJN, Justice Aloysious Katsina-Alu to get rid of him as President of the Court of Appeal for not letting him interfere in the proceedings of Sokoto governorship tussle.
The suspended PCA even went further to file a suit at the Federal High Court in Abuja.?
He alleged in his affidavit that the CJN asked him, as the PCA, to disband the panel constituted for the Sokoto State governorship election petition appeal tribunal.? He said the CJN ordered him to “direct the panel of justices to decide against the appellant.”
He said it was his failure to accede to these requests that precipitated the decision of the ex-CJN to remove him from his position as the PCA under the guise of recommending him for appointment to the Supreme Court through the Federal Judicial Service Commission (FJSC).
The crisis forced the National Judicial Council (NJC) to set up panels to look into the issue. One of the panels was headed by Justice Ibrahim Auta, the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court. That in itself was regarded as an embarrassment since Auta was a junior judge to both of them.
The NJC panel cleared the ex-CJN of any wrongdoing and asked the PCA to apologise to the most senior judicial officer. Again, Justice Salami screamed and approached the Federal High Court to challenge the decision of the NJC asking him to tender an apology.
While the case was still subsisting, the NJC controversially resolved to suspend Salami.
This was a decision that was upheld by President Goodluck Jonathan.
This drew nothing but the ire of Nigerians from various walks of life. The Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) which was not a party to the resolution of the NJC, withdrew its members from that body.
Lawsuits were instituted against the move of the NJC. A group, the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP), has even gone ahead to file a suit at the ECOWAS Court. Its Executive Director, Adetokunbo Mumuni, has said lack of confidence in the Nigerian judiciary was what forced the group file a fresh suit challenging the removal of Justice Salami as the PCA at the ECOWAS Court.
An unforgettable event in the history of Nigerian judiciary in the year 2011 was the arraignment of the former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Dimeji Bankole and his Deputy, Usman Bayero Nafada at a Federal High Court in Abuja on allegation of corruption.
Bankole, who was arrested by operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) three days after he left office, was initially slammed with a 16-count charge of misappropriation of N948 million through contract inflation. Though he was granted bail, he was rearrested immediately and re-arraigned before Justice Suleiman Belgore of the Abuja High Court alongside his then Deputy, Nafada on 17-count charge which had to do with an? illegal procurement of N40 billion loans. Their trial is still ongoing.
Three former governors who completed their tenures last year were also charged to courts in their states of origin for corruption. Former Ogun State Governor, Gbenga Daniel was alleged to have? misappropriated N58bn while he held sway; the immediate past Governor of Oyo State Christopher Alao-Akala, was accused of? stealing of N25bn while his counterpart in Nassarawa, Aliyu Doma,? was alleged to have embezzled? N18bn public funds.
In July last year, a Federal High Court in Lagos sentenced a Taiwanese, Fong Chiu Sen and a Chinese, Wang Richard to 15 years imprisonment each for being involved in the importation of a full container load of cocaine estimated at about N4.2 billion.
The cocaine imported into the country, which weighed 450.4kg, was said to have been disguised as cigarette. The drug was imported into the country from the Republic of Chile.?
But last year was also a year of acquittals and discharges. Former governor of Lagos State, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu was acquitted and discharged by the Code of Conduct Tribunal. The former governor was slammed with a three-count charge. He was accused of maintaining foreign bank accounts between 1999 and 2007 while he was governor of Lagos State.
The Chairman of the Tribunal, Justice Umar Yakubu, in his verdict held that the prosecution did not produce affidavit of evidence to buttress its accusations as the evidence before the court bordered on accusations in the initial charge.
The tribunal held that the CCB failed to show how Tinubu operated the said foreign accounts, as names traced to the accounts were not his but those of his close relatives..
“No prima facie case has been established against accused applicant. The prosecution failed to file affidavit evidence in support of the count-amended charges. The tribunal has no jurisdiction to proceed. The charges are hereby quashed and the accused person discharged,” Justice Yakubu said.
In November last year, the Court of Appeal in Lagos division upturned the judgment of a Lagos High Court which convicted former Chairman of National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, [NDLEA] Bello Lafiaji and his ex-Special Assistant, Usman Amali of abuse of office and conspiracy.
Justice Olusola Williams of a Lagos High Court had in the judgment, sentenced Lafiaji to 16 years imprisonment Amali got a seven-year jail term.
But the appellate court, in its judgment delivered by Justice Mohammed Ambi-Usi Danjuma, allowed the two separate appeals filled by Lafiaji and Amali and set aside the conviction and sentence of Justice Williams delivered on June 21, 2010.
In a unanimous decision, judges of the appellate court, which heard the appeal, held that the prosecution failed to prove its cases against the appellants beyond reasonable doubt.
The court noted that the evidence of prosecution witnesses were marred by irreconcilable contradictions and wondered how the lower court went ahead to convict the appellants.
Also in November last year, Justice Yetunde Idowu of a Lagos High Court in Ikeja, awarded N25 million damages against the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) for an unlawful detention and the violation of the fundamental human right of actor and comedian, Babatunde Omidina (alias Baba Suwe).
The judge also ordered that NDLEA should apologise to Omidina in conspicuous pages in two widely read national newspapers.
Last year also, witness to the arguments of lawyers in the protracted trial of Major Hamza Al-Mustapha who was the Chief Security Officer to late Gen. Sani Abacha and? Alhaji Lateef Sofolahan.
Both were charged with the murder and conspiracy to murder Alhaja Kudirat Abiola, wife of late business mogul and politician, Chief Moshood Kashimawo Abiola.
Justice Mojisola Dada had already fixed January 30, 2012 as the day of judgment.
How will the history of the judiciary be told this year? Can the third organ of government redeem its suffering image in the year 2012? Time will tell.