Invading homes of judges with masked DSS operatives ”crude, unconstitutional” — NBA

The President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) Mr. Abubakar Mahmud (SAN) has reaffirmed NBA’s position that the arrests and detention of two Supreme Court justices and five other justices of the federal high court by the Department of State Security Service (DSS) was unlawful and unconstitutional. The NBA President while addressing a press briefing […]

The President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) Mr. Abubakar Mahmud (SAN) has reaffirmed NBA’s position that the arrests and detention of two Supreme Court justices and five other justices of the federal high court by the Department of State Security Service (DSS) was unlawful and unconstitutional.

The NBA President while addressing a press briefing in Abuja Thursday insisted that the invasion the houses of the justices in the middle of the night by masked security operatives was not proper, crude  and uncivilized .

The bar warned that the country’s judiciary should not be exposed to ridicule and disdain by security operatives under the guise of fighting corruption.

Mahmud however said that lawyers in the country will not condone any act of indiscipline among judges and will not shield any judge found to have contravened the law.

The NBA President told journalists that the justification of the action of the DSS by the Presidency was not tenable and asked the Presidency to always act within the ambit of the law.

He said the rule of law was compromised, in the way and manner the houses of the judges were invaded by the DSS operatives because under the constitution they have no power to dabble into economic matters as they did in the arrest.

On the claim that the NJC did not act on the intelligence report by the DSS on the judges, the NBA president said that the NJC is not accountable or answerable to any organ of government including the DSS.

“It is not our view that the DSS should ask the NJC to make available to it the copies of disciplinary proceedings against judges for its vetting. the NJC is not answerable to the DSS, It is not under its control and supervision "

He maintained that the NBA is not against criminal investigation of judicial officers but that such action must be conducted in line with the rule law and that any judge found wanting should be subjected to the laws of the land , " but we do not feel that the strategies of the DSS was proper”