Gov Wike Criticises NJC For Suspending Judges Accused Of Corruption

<div xmlns='http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml'><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkFUdxejKgsC4nwacZkFWLNFV8gnESNHILCueKYPC7cJtL09_jx7WyzTEZV-XLSqPvd2Xy7R21uO6AZGLJhi84MrW7BC1B4Pg-p34VDzQcfdZf-o4ZduumWZiiZKfMLhWAhUKahe7jPc8Q/s2560/%25255BUNSET%25255D.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkFUdxejKgsC4nwacZkFWLNFV8gnESNHILCueKYPC7cJtL09_jx7WyzTEZV-XLSqPvd2Xy7R21uO6AZGLJhi84MrW7BC1B4Pg-p34VDzQcfdZf-o4ZduumWZiiZKfMLhWAhUKahe7jPc8Q/s640/%25255BUNSET%25255D.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;"/></a>Gov. Nyesom Wike of Rivers has said the decision of the National Judicial Council (NJC) directing judges under investigation to step aside portends great danger to the nation’s democracy.<br/> Mr. Wike made the assertion when the executive members of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) Port Harcourt branch paid him a courtesy visit on Friday.<br/> <br/> The NJC announced the decision on Wednesday, following calls for the suspension of the judges who are accused of corruption.<br/> <br/> According to him, the u-turn by the NJC will encourage politicians to write petitions against any judge whose judgment is likely to go against such politician.<br/> <br/> “This move to ask judges to step aside is in favour of politicians because no judge will deliver judgment against government or a ruling party.<br/> “The implication is that politicians can now write as many petitions alleging that they saw a judge taking brown envelope – which will warrant the judge to be asked to step aside.<br/> <br/> “For us, politicians, we are happy with this development because if I notice that I will lose a case, then I will tell my lawyer to write a petition which will result to the judge stepping aside.<br/> “So, in other not to be alleged to have done anything wrong, judges will not give judgment against government or the ruling party.<br/> “This is because, if judge deliver judgment against government or the ruling party, then agencies of government will come after them,” he said.<br/> <br/> Mr. Wike said the development portends grave danger to the judiciary arm of government and to the common man.<br/> <br/> He said the move was a clear manipulation and attempt to silence the opposition, especially as the nation was heading toward 2019 general elections.<br/> <br/> The governor said that example to the manipulations was INEC’s quick reaction to announce federal and state legislative rerun elections shortly after the National Assembly ordered it to do so.<br/> <br/> “Simply because the Senate said it must conduct election within five weeks; the next day, INEC came up with a time table for the election.<br/> <br/> “This is the same INEC that cited insecurity as reason why it could not conduct elections in Rivers, and now within one day after Senate’s position, the same INEC released a time table.<br/> <br/> “The question is when did INEC meet security agencies to now take a position that there is no longer security problem in Rivers State, hence the decision to conduct the rerun elections.<br/> <br/> “All these boil down to manipulations which not only endanger our democracy but threatens us as a people,” he said. (NAN)</div>

Gov Wike Criticises NJC For Suspending Judges Accused Of Corruption

Gov. Nyesom Wike of Rivers has said the decision of the National Judicial Council (NJC) directing judges under investigation to step aside p...

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ARREST OF JUDGES: ‘Do not ground judiciary’, Ikpomnwen urges lawyers, judicial workers

<div xmlns='http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml'><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkmjlqpZCwoo1pcJ72U1T_nUO3nYuINo4JkhOWHCIsj_vMN7Y_tHkZALtTh-8HjeXi3M1NDrTe7_XEdNlKfnp34lgTjpHoTAZYN8ZRJaeObwZcmXxocXXKp-uag2wKramLd-UonM70jTe0/s2560/%25255BUNSET%25255D.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkmjlqpZCwoo1pcJ72U1T_nUO3nYuINo4JkhOWHCIsj_vMN7Y_tHkZALtTh-8HjeXi3M1NDrTe7_XEdNlKfnp34lgTjpHoTAZYN8ZRJaeObwZcmXxocXXKp-uag2wKramLd-UonM70jTe0/s640/%25255BUNSET%25255D.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;"/></a>FORMER Provost Marshal of the Nigerian Army and military lawyer, Brig. Gen.Idada Ikpomnwen has admonished judicial workers and members of the Nigeria Bar Association (NBA) to have a rethink on their plans to ground the judiciary to protest the arrest of judges by the Department of State Service, “so that it will not look like the Bar is pursuing shadows instead of substance.<br/> <br/> Ikponmwen however called on the Federal Government to address the issue of job assignments for security agencies to avoid duplication of jobs which according to him may lead to rivalry. According to him, “it must be noted that most of the security agencies have the power of arrest, but we expect that they will be making arrest in areas that are in their scale of job. It does appear to me that there is still a lot of fluidity with regards to who has what responsibility within the law enforcement family”.<br/> <br/> The renowned military lawyer who was reacting to the arrest of two Supreme Court justices and five other judges, said “even though I agree with the Bar Association that we must operate in line with the dictates of the rule of law, I feel that the war they are embarking upon is not really desirable in the present circumstance. The war they are embarking upon now is on the extreme side and to me, it is like leaving the substance and going for the form. I said this because I do not see any explanation for a judge of any court having N53million in his bedroom. And I also say this because the Bar has been so silent about the misconduct of some judges in the past. So why this cry now, when you find judges having so much money in their homes?<br/> <br/> <br/> “I think for whatever anomalies that have been noticed, investigations must go on in the interest of having a sanitized and transparent judiciary.<br/> <br/> There should be no mistake about it that we have a lot of good judges but the few bad ones should be dealt with like criminals. Government has to start drawing a line between the role of one agency and the other. The Bar must sub-pedal on the decision. Let us not ground the work of the judiciary to a halt, so that it will not look as if the Bar is pursuing shadow instead of substance”.<br/> <br/> Gen.Ikpomnwen further stressed the need for the Federal Government to “address strictly the issue of the job assignment of police, DSS and other law enforcement agencies in this country”. He said “as far as I am concerned there is no way the DSS would not investigate people. But what we expect is that they will engage in security related investigations and not crime related investigations. The issue of state security is not exactly the same like investigating crimes.<br/> <br/> In the process of investigating security related offences, if the DSS stumbles into crime, like forgery, stealing, it is expected that they will turn it over to the appropriate agencies like the police, ICPC and others. It is also important that this clear cut demarcation must be known to the public so that the society will know those who are supposed to handle what, as a way of promoting the rule of law”.</div>

ARREST OF JUDGES: ‘Do not ground judiciary’, Ikpomnwen urges lawyers, judicial workers

FORMER Provost Marshal of the Nigerian Army and military lawyer, Brig. Gen.Idada Ikpomnwen has admonished judicial workers and members of th...

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