‘Fight against corruption should involve all‘

What are your thoughts on the last presidential election and the emergence of retired General Muhammadu Buhari as the winner?As a Nigerian and a constitutional lawyer, that is the best thing has happened to Nigeria. The political and electoral eclipse of the ruling party, PDP, was long overdue and I am happy that Nigerians spoke […]

What are your thoughts on the last presidential election and the emergence of retired General Muhammadu Buhari as the winner?
As a Nigerian and a constitutional lawyer, that is the best thing has happened to Nigeria. The political and electoral eclipse of the ruling party, PDP, was long overdue and I am happy that Nigerians spoke in unison in jettisoning that party.
This is the first time a ruling party is being shown the way out of power, meaning that Nigerians have displayed their political maturity now unlike the hitherto lackadaisical attitude.
It is a good development that the opposition is in the rein of power. We have said all along that the opposition should stop going into election individually. The merger came into fruition two or three years ago and we are happy for it.
One party, ACN, would not have been able to face the PDP because it has said that it would rule Nigeria for 60 years. Now the opposition has checkmated the 60 years’ projection of the ruling party.
Let the ruling party, after 16 years go into opposition and see how it is. The party has been in power since 1999 and there is nothing to show for it. That is why Nigerians came out massively on election day to change the ruling government. Nigerians really deserve to be applauded for the bold initiative.
Would the emergence of the president-elect have any impact on the judicial sector?
Well, it is not only Buhari who is coming into the rein of power. Don’t forget that his vice, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo (SAN) is from my constituency. And therefore, it is not going to be possible for Buhari to be ruthless with the judiciary or rule in autocratic manner the way he did when he was military head of state 30 years ago.
In any case, Buhari has told the whole world that he is now a reformed person and a completely new democrat. Based on that and coupled with his age, he should stand by his word and show by his action and deed that he is actually a reformed democrat by the way he handles the affairs of the country.
He has promised to fight corruption in the land. How do you think the bar and the bench can help him in this crusade?
I must confess there is no effective way the president-elect can fight corruption in Nigeria without the fullest cooperation of the bar and the bench. The bench has to do away with all forms of technicalities that lawyers would deliberately introduce in thwarting corruption cases.
There are numerous judges who are willing to do justice to corruption cases but defense lawyers are bent on obstructing same.
Are we lawyers not the ones who go to court asking it for adjournment in order to give our clients facing corruption trial to escape? Is it not in this country that a former governor had corruption case hanging on his neck for seven years until he won election and became governor for the second time? Now, he enjoys immunity and he is insulting everybody and attacking the judiciary in Ekiti State.
If the bar and the bench had worked together to iron out corrupt cases, the accused would have known their fate for a long time.
There are also cases where lawyers defending accused persons are ready but the judges are not readily available to them.
The bar and the bench should not be the one to blame alone; the government should also be blamed for failure to provide the necessary logistics for the judiciary in order to ensure quick dispensation of justice.
The fight against corruption should involve all and sundry, because there is limit to what Gen. Buhari could do to stop corruption in the land.
In a few weeks from now, election tribunals would be bombarded with petitions on the 2015 general elections. What is your take on the transfer of political matters to court on the strength of the recent warning by the CJN to judges not to be used as tool to truncate the nation’s democracy?
The CJN must be commended for the timely warning. If not for his timely warning, some judges would have slammed some presidential candidates and knocked them out either on the ground of educational qualification or other excuses. Nigeria would have been thrown into darkness due to the judicial order.
I am happy that the judges heeded to the warning of the CJN. That’s pre-election.
We are in post-election period now and it is certain that politicians who cannot win elections at their backyards would flood the tribunal with petitions. Well, the constitution guarantees their right to contest elections result.
But the court has internal control mechanism through which it can wed out irresponsible and unsustainable cases by the petitioners.
What is your view on the proposed separation of the office of Attorney General and that of Minister of Justice?
I am in total support of the separation of the two offices because the dangers of merging them are too many and have shown same under the present administration.
When a minister is part of the major political decision of the government, how do you expect him to go to court and fight against such policy? In any case, whatever such person would give would be politically biased and blurred in favour of the government he is serving because he doesn’t want to be kicked out.
In other words, fairness and equity would not be his watchword because he is considering how to retain his position.
Constitutionally speaking, the attorney general, irrespective of his involvement with the policies of the government of the day is supposed to be guided by public interest, justice, equity and fairness at all times. But in reality, you find out that most attorneys general either at federal or state levels are so impervious to practical need to dispense justice without fear or favour.