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Godwin Tsa, Okwe Obi, Abuja & Joe Effiong, Uyo
The Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Walter Onnoghen yesterday refused to appear before the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT), as fireworks began on his trial over his alleged refusal to declare his assets.
This is even as the Federal High Court, Abuja, stopped the Federal Government from trying the CJN before the CCT.
The tribunal had sequel to an application by the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) fixed his arraignment for yesterday.
At exactly 10am when the charge marked CCT/ ABJ/01/19, was called up, chairman of the tribunal, Justice Danladi Umar, demanded to know why the CJN was not in court and if he was served with the charge.
The prosecution counsel, Alhaji Aliyu Umar (SAN), who led five other lawyers, told the court: “When we went to his (CJN) house, he directed his personal assistant to collect the charge on his behalf. His personal assistant endorsed it, so he has been served.”
The FG, in the charge that was filed by the CCB, equally accused the CJN of operating foreign back accounts.
The prosecuting agency alleged that contrary to relevant laws regulating conduct of public office holders, the CJN maintained a domiciliary foreign currencies account that comprised of dollars account, pound sterling account and euro account.
Chief Wole Olanipekun (SAN), who led 46 other Senior Advocates of Nigeria and 43 other lawyers, told the tribunal that the CJN had filed a motion dated January 14, challenging jurisdiction of the tribunal to try him.
“We are not just challenging jurisdiction, we are even challenging the jurisdiction of this tribunal,” he submitted.
Olanipekun said the defendant was not in court because he has not been served with the summons of the tribunal.
Umar argued that service was effected on the CJN since according to him, the registrar of the court informed him that the CJN directed his personal secretary, one Sunday O., to accept service on his behalf.
But the defence insisted that in a criminal charge, service must be made personally on the defendant.
Umar in conceding the defectiveness of the service urged the court to redirect service on the defendant with a directive that the service be made personally on the CJN.
Subsequently, the tribunal adjourned the matter till January 22 for the arraignment of Onnoghen and the hearing of all applications relating to the matter.
There was heavy presence of security personnel at the tribunal. As early as 8am, the venue was already condoned off by security operatives who carried out screening of persons going into the premises of the tribunal.
Over 50 SANs alongside dozens of other lawyers attended the proceedings in line with the call of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) president, Paul Usoro (SAN), to show solidarity with the CJN.
Count one of the charge read: “That you, Justice Walter Nkanu Onnoghen CJN, GCON between June 8, 2005 to December 14, 2016 being a public officer, serving as a Judicial Officer of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as a Justice of the Supreme Court of Nigeria failed to declare and submit a written declaration of all your assets and liabilities within the prescribed period of (3) months after being sworn-in as a Justice of the Supreme Court of Nigeria on the 8 day of June, 2005 and you thereby contravened the provisions of section 15(1) of the Code of Conduct Bureau and Tribunal Act Cap 15 LFN 2004 and punishable under section 23(2) a, b and c of the same Act.”
In counts two to six, Onnoghen was accused of falsely declaring his assets by omitting to declare funds in his domiciliary accounts as well as an e-saving accounts both in local and foreign currencies, all in Standard Chartered Bank, Wuse, Abuja.
Meanwhile, Justice N.E. Maha issued an interim order while ruling on two separate ex parte applications that were moved before her.
While directing all the parties to maintain status quo till January 17, the judge equally ordered that the defendants be served with all the processes filed and they should appear in court at the next hearing. Deputy President of the Senate, Senator Ike Ekweremadu, however, urged the Federal Government to withdraw the charges against Justice Onnoghen, and apologise to the nation’s judiciary.
In series of posts on his social media handles, @iamekweremadu, in the early hours of yesterday, Ekweremadu, who described the charges as extremely dangerous for the nation’s democracy, emphasised the need to eschew every form of intimidation against other arms of government, especially their leaderships, to enable them play their constitutional roles in the overall interest of the nation.
He noted that the integrity of the Nigerian judiciary remained intact despite obvious constraints.
He said: “I consider the charges against the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Walter Onnoghen, as ill-advised and dangerous, especially after similar attempts at the leadership of the National Assembly failed.”
Similarly, Akwa Ibom State Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Mr. Uwemedimo Nwoko, described the prosecution of the CJN as an attempted “coup against democracy.”
He alleged that since the advent of democracy in 1999, this action of the Federal Government “is the most potent threat to the survival of democracy in the country.”
The presidential candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), Professor Jerry Gana, described the charges as “political gangsterism” on the part of the Federal Government.
Addressing journalists yesterday in Abuja, he advised government to focus on external threats, internal security and economic challenges plaguing the country rather than go after perceived political enemies.
He explained that he had no problem with the trial but that it should be done within the ambits of the law; stressing that if not properly handled, it could truncate the forthcoming general elections.
The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) urged President Muhammadu Buhari to “instruct Malami to immediately withdraw the charges against Onnoghen and send any allegations of breach of asset declaration provisions of the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria (as amended) to the National Judicial Council (NJC) for investigation.
A statement yesterday by its legal adviser, Bamisope Adeyanju, said:“The moral guilt or the legal guilt of Onnoghen should be left for the judicial process to decide, as he is presumed innocent until proven guilty by a court of competent jurisdiction.”
The Otu Oka-Iwu (Law Society) yesterday after an emergency executive meeting noted: “There has been consistent and determined assault on the judiciary and human rights since the last two years and lawyers who are high-ranking functionaries in this administration can no longer play the ostrich.
It called on the Federal Government to immediately withdraw the charges and apologise to Onnoghen and “the entire judiciary and Nigerians.”
Meanwhile, Governor Godwin Obaseki of Edo State yesterday described the Sunday Abuja meeting of governors of Delta, Rivers, Cross River, Akwa Ibom and Bayelsa states, on the trial of Onnoghen, as a meeting of governors of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and not a meeting of South-South governors in a statement by his Special Adviser on Media and Communication Strategy, Mr. Crusoe Osagie.
