TENSION IN ABUJA AS LAWYERS PROTEST

There was tension on the streets of Abuja,
yesterday, as protesting lawyers and civil
society groups under the aegis of Lawyers in
Defence of Democracy and Citizens for good
governance, kicked against what they
described as attempt by the Federal
Government to silence the judiciary and calls
for the affected judges to step aside.
According to them, the independence of the
judiciary remains sacrosanct and the
institution must be respected by all. They
stressed that justice and morality cannot be
seen from the eyes of one man but through
the law, adding that President Muhammadu
Buhari cannot put the judiciary in his pocket.
The lawyers after briefing journalists,
yesterday, at the Merit House, Maitama, Abuja
immediately took to the streets and stormed
the Federal High Court Abuja, Attorney
General’s office, National Human Rights
Commission, Aso Rock, Supreme Court and
National Assembly, where they insisted that
judges must not step down as that will be
victory for tyranny and intimidation.
According to the protesters, the Judiciary
must down tools until the DSS obeys all
pending judgments.
During the protest, major roads were
barricaded and there was palpable tension as
the protesters met stiff resistance from
security agents, who blocked them on the
road leading to the Three Arms Zone as they
insisted on marching to Aso Rock.
The Joint Convener of the protesters, Barrister
Ikenga Imo Ugochinyere said: “We Lawyers in
Defence of Democracy and Citizens for Good
Governance reject the call for the judges,
whose homes were invaded by the DSS, to
step aside as heeding the call will be a
victory for tyranny and gradual return to
Kokoma democracy. We dissociate ourselves
from such call.
“That the DSS and other agencies release
from detention all Nigerians who have been
granted bail by the courts and who have
fulfilled their bail conditions including
compliance with all judgments and orders.
Their continuous hold of such persons is an
affront on the authority of the judiciary,
dictatorial and a desecration of the
fundamental democratic principle of separation
of powers. The Executive cannot be
prosecutor and judge at the same time.
“We call on NJC and the Chief Justice of
Nigeria to direct all judges in the country not
to hear any applications from the DSS and
other agencies, except bail applications, until
there is obedience to all pending orders
against them. Of what use are the Courts if
their orders cannot be enforced and obeyed
by the state?
“That the United Nation, US, and UK
governments, National Human Rights
Commission, Amnesty International and the
international community should immediately
call this regime to order and halt this drift to
the edge of destruction of our democracy as
any further delay could lead to irretrievable
derailment of Nigeria’s democracy.
A country where the Federal Government
unilaterally concocts police leadership to rope
in the leadership of the National Assembly on
trumped up charges is a lawless country.
A country where the system encourages
selective justice; where even renowned
treasury looters define the boundaries of
justice is lawless. A country where anti-
corruption war is used to fight political
opponents or dissenting views is a lawless
country.
“A country where a man can secure bail four
times for the same charges and you still
detain him is lawless. A country where a
judge will grant bail on bailable offences and
the person involved is then arrested on
phantom corruption charges because he ruled
against the whims and caprices of persons in
government is a lawless country.
“Fighting corruption in the judiciary must
include not only hunting for corrupt judges in
line with the law but also disciplining the
executive who ignore the orders because it
did not favour them. Flagrant disobedience to
court orders is the worst form of judicial
corruption and a gross impeachable offence in
a democracy.
“Justice and morality cannot be seen in the
eyes of one man but through the law. We
cannot return to the dark ages when citizens
went to work without knowing if they will ever
come back to their families, where fear is
instilled in us that non obedience to the men
on the high table will earn you the dark
corners of the detention wall, an era where by
the time we leave here our houses would
have been raided and many of us taken away
to be charged even for imaginary treason and
terrorism just because we spoke out.
“No society can be built on lawlessness. In a
loud voice, we say the attack on judges who
ruled against DSS and the government
interest was not a fight against corruption but
a failed move to whip the courageous judges
into line like school children. Therefore the
call for the judges to step aside is baseless,
laughable, illegal and an impossible thinking
of men who want to return Nigeria to Kokoma
democracy where the rule of law, justice and
human rights have no place.
“We unanimously pass a vote of confidence
on National Judicial Council and their decision
taken that the arrested Judges should not
resign till there is proper investigation and the
proof of evidence shown to establish prima
facie case of corruption as allegations of
money laundering cannot substitute the claim
that there was huge evidence of corruption
and judicial compromise aimed to be
eradicated through the purported DSS
surgical operation.
“Apart from the Judges already disciplined by
the NJC, has any evidence so far linked any of
the Judges to corruption or that they
compromised their position in granting bail to
Dasuki, Nnamdi Kanu and Umar Mohammed
or has any evidence linked the judges to any
compromise or corruption in the Akwa Ibom,
Rivers, Abia, Ebonyi and Ekiti governorship
cases? Has DSS after its invasion produced
any evidence showing Nnamdi Kanu bought
his bail, how Umar Mohammed paid Justice
Dimgba? Were they not all entitled to bail as
spelt out in our laws?”