Chief Justice of Nigeria should have stepped aside, Buhari was right – BDSO

images of chief justices of nigeria and buhari

NIGERIA

The Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Walter Onnoghen should have stepped aside to allow a transparent investigation, having admitted that he lied about his assets, Nigerians in Diaspora under the aegis of Buhari Diaspora Support Organisation (BDSO), told Sky News Africa. 

The group said President Muhammadu Buhari was right to have suspended the CJ in continuation to the fight against corruption.

The organisation, in a statement signed by the Chairman, Mr Charles Efe Sylvester, said that Buhari’s decision will allowed for a just and transparent investigation or trial into the case against the CJ at the Code of Conduct Tribunal.

The statement said, “It is shocking that Justice Onnoghen could not remember that he had many houses and three foreign bank accounts with millions of dollars in transactions. How could he have forgotten those accounts when there were many transactions on the account. 

“Also, as a civil servant, how could he have acquired such large sums of foreign currencies in his bank accounts. Further, how could he be a judge over his own case.”

BDSO argued that despite the constitutional lacuna on the removal of the CJN, a competent court of law, been the CCT had directed the president to appoint an acting CJN while the case against Justice Onnoghen was on and pending the determination of the case, stressing that the president acted both legally and in the national interest, as well as an act of duty to protect the integrity of the judiciary.

The statement added, “Justice Onnoghen had agreed in the case of FGN Vs Metu and FGN Vs Saraki , that the only Competent court to try false assets declaration of public officers is the CCT, consequently, he is not above the law and should subject himself through the same process.

“His act of going from court to court in other to try and frustrate the case against him has reduced the judiciary to ridicule and made the office of the CJN a laughing stock.

“We commend President Buhari for doing the right thing by suspending the CJN (not removal, as wrongly claimed by mischief makers). 

“The current judgement of an appeal court rejecting the request of Onnoghen to have the court stop his trial at the CCT is a vindication of the action taken by president Buhari to suspend the CJN and clean up the mess in the judicial system for the good of the common man,” it said.

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