The tension and anxiety generated over the fate of the acting Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN) shifted to the court on Tuesday when human rights activist, Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa, dragged President Muhammadu Buhari, Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo, the Senate, the National Judicial Council, Hon Justice Walter Onnoghen and the Attorney-General of the Federation, to court, in order to preserve the office of the CJN.
In the suit filed at the Federal High Court, Lagos, Adegboruwa is asking the court to direct the President, and in his absence the Vice-President, to forthwith forward the name of Hon Justice Walter Onnoghen to the Senate for confirmation as the Chief Justice of Nigeria.
He is asking for an order of injunction to restrain the President and the Vice-President from appointing another candidate for presentation to the Senate, for the office of the Chief Justice of Nigeria, apart from Onnoghen, who is the most senior justice of the Supreme Court and who has already been selected and recommended by the National Judicial Council.
Adegboruwa wants the court to stop the Senate from accepting, entertaining, deliberating upon or considering the nomination of any other candidate that may be forwarded to it by the President and the Vice-President, apart from Onnoghen, who has already been selected by the NJC.
He is also seeking an order of injunction to restrain the NJC from entertaining any request from the President and the Vice-President, to consider another candidate for the office apart from Onnoghen already selected.
Adegboruwa also prayed the court to forthwith direct Onnoghen to assume and take over and be performing and discharging the duties and functions of the office of the CJN, until such a time that the President would agree to forward his name to the Senate for confirmation or until he retires at the mandatory age of 70 years.
In a detailed 42-paragraph affidavit in support of the suit, Adegboruwa traced the history of the previous appointments of all the CJN, stating that it has never been the style of the executive to leave a vacuum in the highest judicial office of the land.
He stated that upon the coming into force of the 1999 Constitution, the President has no discretion in the choice of candidate to occupy the office of the Chief Justice of Nigeria, other than the person selected and recommended to him by the National Judicial Council.
Adegboruwa accused Buhari of a negative bias against the judiciary which he had openly declared as his headache, stressing that the President is deliberately withholding the appointment of Onnoghen to destabilise the judiciary and to force him into compulsory retirement, being a Christian from the Southern part of Nigeria.
The lawyer accused the President of a hidden agenda to perpetuate civilian dictatorship and to implement his ethnic and religious agenda, by frustrating the first Chief Justice of Nigeria from the South in the past 30 years.
He cited in the new suit, instances of the refusal of the President to obey the order of the ECOWAS Court to release Colonel Sambo Dasuki (rtd), the order of the Federal High Court to release Shiite leader, Sheik Ibrahim El Zakzaky, as precedents of the preference of the President for a system of lawlessness, contempt and total disregard for the judiciary and the rule of law.
The lawyer accused the Vice-President of failing to act decisively as he did with the case of the EFCC chairman, whose nomination he forwarded to the Senate in the absence of the President.
Adegboruwa maintained that by February 10, 2017, the judiciary will be thrown into total chaos as there will be nobody to preside over meetings of the NJC, there will be no Chief Justice to assign important appeals and there will be no further appointment, promotion or discipline of judges.
Adegboruwa is seeking the following reliefs from the Court:
“A. A DECLARATION that under and by virtue of section 292 (i) (a) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999, the failure, refusal or omission of the 1st Defendant, and in his absence, the 2nd Defendant, to forward the name of Honourable Justice Walter Onoghen, JSC, recommended to him as the Chief Justice of Nigeria, to the Senate for its confirmation, amounts to a compulsory retirement of the said Honourable Justice Walter Onoghen, JSC, in a manner that is inconsistent with the due process of law and is therefore unconstitutional, illegal, null and void.
B. A DECLARTION that under and by virtue of sections 292 (i) (a) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999, the Defendants are obliged to select, recommend, appoint or confirm the appointment of the 4th Defendant as the Chief Justice of Nigeria unless and until he is lawfully removed from office as the most senior Justice of the Supreme Court having been so selected and recommended by the National Judicial Council.
C. A DECLARATION that under and by virtue of section 153(1), Paragraph 21 of the Third Schedule and section 231 (1-5) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999, the National Judicial Council, 3rd Defendant is the ONLY body authorized by law to select and recommend any candidate for appointment as the Chief Justice of Nigeria and if and when such recommendation is made, the 1stDefendant, and in his absence the 2ndDefendant, cannot lawfully reject or by pass it to appoint another person as the Chief Justice of Nigeria.
D. A DECLARATION that under and by virtue of sections 153(1), Paragraph 21 of the Third Schedule and section 231 (1-5)f the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999, the selection and recommendation of Honourable Justice Walter Onoghen, JSC, for appointment as the Chief Justice of Nigeria by the National Judicial Council is final and conclusive of the said appointment and the decision of the 1stDefendant, and in his absence the 2ndDefendant, in failing, refusing and omitting to forward the said selection and recommendation to the Senate for its confirmation, is unlawful, invalid, illegal and improper.
E. A DECLARATION that under and by virtue of section 153(1), Paragraph 21 of the Third Schedule and section 231 (1-5) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999, the 1stDefendant, and in his absence the 2ndDefendant, are not entitled in law to appoint any other person, as the Chief Justice of Nigeria, other than the Honourable Justice Walter Onoghen, JSC, already selected and recommended by the National Judicial Council, which is the body empowered by law to so do.
F. A DECLARATION that the Honourable Justice Walter Onoghen, JSC, is the fit and proper person to be appointed as the Chief Justice of Nigeria, upon his selection and recommendation by the National Judicial Council, and the 1stDefendant, and in his absence, the 2ndDefendant, are obliged to forward his name to the Senate for its confirmation.
G. A DECLARATION that the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is not entitled to entertain, discuss, deliberate upon or in any other manner countenance the appointment by the 1st Defendant, and in his absence, the 2nd Defendant, of any candidate for confirmation, other than the Honourable Justice Walter Onnoghen, JSC, being the person lawfully selected and recommended by the National Judicial Council, as the Chief Justice of Nigeria.
H. AN ORDER directing the 1stDefendant, and in his absence the 2ndDefendant, to forthwith forward the name of Honourable Justice Walter Onoghen, JSC, as the Chief Justice of Nigeria, being the lawful candidate duly selected and recommended by the National Judicial Council, to the Senate for its approval and confirmation.
I. AN INJUNCTION, restraining the 1st Defendant, and in his absence the 2nd Defendant, their agents, officers, servants and privies, from appointing, nominating or in any other manner presenting any other person, to the Senate as candidate for confirmation as the Chief Justice of Nigeria, other than the Honourable Justice Walter Onoghen, JSC, already selected and recommended by the National Judicial Council, which is the body empowered by law to so do.
J. AN INJUNCTION, restraining the 3rd Defendant, its agents, officers, servants and privies, from entertaining, selecting, recommending or in other manner considering the candidature of any other person, to the 1st Defendant as candidate for appointment as the Chief Justice of Nigeria, other than the Honourable Justice Walter Onoghen, JSC, already selected and recommended whist he is still in office as the most senior Justice of the Supreme Court of Nigeria.
K. AN INJUNCTION, restraining the 5th Defendant, whether by itself, its respective members, its servants, agents, officers or privies from receiving, entertaining, countenancing, considering, deliberating upon or in any other manner acting upon any request, letter, application or demand from the 1st Defendant and in his absence the 2nd Defendant, for the approval, confirmation or endorsement of the candidature of any other person, other than the 4th Defendant, Honourable Justice Walter Onnoghen, as the Chief Justice of Nigeria.
L. AN ORDER, directing the 4thDefendant, Honourable Justice Walter Onneghen to assume, perform and discharge the all the duties and functions of the Chief Justice of Nigeria, until such a time when the 1st Defendant, and in his absence the 2nd Defendant, forwards his name to the Senate for confirmation as the Chief Justice of Nigeria, being the most senior justice of the Supreme Court.”
No hearing date has been fixed for the suit.
In a related development, the Cross River caucus in the National Assembly has urged the Presidency to transmit Onnoghen’s name to the Senate for confirmation as CJN.
Onnoghen is a native of Okurike town in Biase Local Government Area of Cross River.
He obtained Bachelor of Law Degree, with upper division from the University of Ghana, Legon, in 1977 and his Bachelo of Law from the Nigerian Law School, Victoria Island, Lagos in 1978 and appointed as a Supreme Court Judge in 20015,
Speaking on behalf of the caucus, Senator John Enoh told newsmen in Abuja on Tuesday that the move would be in fulfillment of Section 231(1) of the 1999 Constitution as amended.
Enoh expressed concern over the delay in transmitting the name of Onnoghen as the substantive CJN.
“The continuous delay by the Presidency to forward Justice Onnoghen’s name to Senate for confirmation, without any lawful and constitutional cause, has brought the issue of judiciary and security of tenure of Judges to doubt and public discourse,’’ he said.
The National Judicial Council (NJC) in exercise of its powers, on October 13, 2016 recommended Onnoghen as the CJN to the President.
Buhari, thereafter, appointed and swore him in as the Acting CJN on November 10, 2016.
“Exactly two months and 15 days, the presidency has delayed and withheld to forward his name to the Senate for confirmation as CJN as required by the constitution.’’
“We are worried by this development for obvious reasons; as a hallowed institution, the judiciary is the bastion of our democracy and should be insulated from undue pressure, influence, politics and manipulation of political predators.
“It operates on an established tradition of a settled succession based on merit and seniority.
“Before now, the convention was for the President to forward the name of a candidate so recommended to him by the NJC in exercise of his powers and responsibility.
“Pursuant to its mandate, what is required from the presidency in this case is a decisive action of simply transmitting the name of Justice Onnoghen to the Senate for confirmation.
Unfortunately, this has not happened.’’ Enoh say.
