DSS to investigates 2 high court chief judges and 4 others
The Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Abubakar Malami SAN has submitted the names of more judges ( who are suspected to be corrupt) to the Department of State Services for probe. The affected judges included two Chief Judges of High Courts, three judges of different divisions of the Federal […]
The Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Abubakar Malami SAN has submitted the names of more judges ( who are suspected to be corrupt) to the Department of State Services for probe.
The affected judges included two Chief Judges of High Courts, three judges of different divisions of the Federal High Court, and a Justice of the Court of Appeal.
Several allegations had been leveled against the judges in the petitions earlier sent to the NJC by the Chairman of Civil Society Network Against Corruption as well as Human and Environmental Development Agenda Resource Centre between 2014 and May, 2016. One of the petitions by CSNAC against a Federal High Court judge was dated May 12, 2016.
Another one sent to the NJC against one of the Chief Judges, dated February 26, 2016, and signed by the Chairman of CSNAC, Mr. Olanrewaju Suraju, was titled ‘‘Request for investigation of contravention of the Code of Conduct by Judicial Officers.’’
Also in another petition, dated April 20, 2016, sent to the NJC against a Justice of the Court of Appeal and others, who served on an election petitions appeal panel this year, accused the panel of receiving N8m from a Senior Advocate of Nigeria.
In yet another petition, CSNAC alleged that N7m was paid to a Chief Judge for a book presentation.
It was also alleged in another petition by CSNAC that a Federal High Court judge received N5m bribe from a SAN.
According to sources, "It is unconscionable that all these petitions that border on the unremitting and impeachment of the integrity of these judicial officers have not been investigated by the National Judicial Council, the constitutional and statutory body vested with the power by the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended) to so do.
The DSS had, during a simultaneous operations last weekend arrested Justices Sylvester Ngwuta and John Okoro of the Supreme Court; the suspended Presiding Justice of the Court of Appeal, Ilorin Division, Justice Mohammed Tsamiya; Justice Kabiru Auta of the Kano State High Court and Justice Adeniyi Ademola of the Federal High Court, Abuja.
Others arrested were a former Chief Judge of Enugu State, Justice I. A. Umezulike, and Muazu Pindiga of the Federal High Court, Gombe Division.
Apart from the seven judges, the DSS said it was investigating eight other judges, bringing the total number to 15.