Success Nwanedo
Since Nigeria’s independence in 1960, regression has occurred in various sectors of governance, one of which is the judiciary. Saddled with the responsibility to make explicit judgments, the bench has lost its ‘teeth’ needed to bite. Reduced to pawns in the game of politics, our sacred chambers and their occupants have been desecrated.
The judiciary can be described as the stabilizing factor for the country’s democracy, yet, it has been treated with disdain by the executive arm. Since the election of Mr Muhammadu Buhari as the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in 2015, disrespect and non-compliance to court orders have gradually crept in as a norm, with the past and present hostility toward the judicial officers.
In 2015, the nation witnessed an invasion of homes of the country’s apex judicial officers, including those of Justice Sylvester Ngwuta and Justice John Okoro, by security operatives. In October 2016, Operatives of the Department of State Security Services (DSS) struck yet again.
In condemnation of the 2016 raid, many citizens described the invasion as outright intimidation of the judicial arm of government. Others believed that the invasion was targeted at Justice Walter Nkanu Onnoghen, the next-in-line to the then Chief Justice of the federation, Justice Mahmud Mohammed. Confirming the speculations of citizens, President Buhari refused to send Justice Onnoghen’s name to the Senate for confirmation as recommended by the National Judicial Council after Justice Mohammed’s retirement. However, Onnoghen was confirmed as 17th Chief Justice of Nigeria in 2017 under the approval of Vice President Yemi Osibanjo, who acted in the stead of the President.
Two years later, Justice Onnoghen was brought before the Code of Conduct Tribunal on the grounds of false declaration of assets. He was removed from office by President Buhari, who replaced him with Ibrahim Tanko Mohammed.
Similarly, in December 2019, a group of security agents invaded a sitting Federal High Court in Abuja presided over by Justice Ijeoma Ojukwu, disrupting proceedings. With the latest invasion of the residence of Justice Mary Odili on Friday, October 29, 2021, one would believe that the assumptions on judicial intimidation were indeed accurate, given the fact that Justice Odili is the second-highest-ranking officer of the Supreme Court.
The raid, which was executed by security operatives on the strength of a Search Warrant issued by a Chief Magistrate, has left many Nigerians puzzled on what lies underneath the dirt of the dubious act. Who/what encouraged security agents to launch an attack on an officer of our sacred Court? Has it anything to do with the politics of 2023 or the South? Indicted agents of the government, including the Attorney-General of the Federation and the Police, are, however, pieces to the incomplete puzzle.
In denial of the development, the Magistrate, who issued the dubious Warrant, claimed that he was misled. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) denied involvement in the illegal search too. The same story was repeated by the State Security Service (SSS), including the Inspector-General of Police, Usman Baba Alkali, who said no personnel of the Police Force took part in the raid. In a statement, the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, Mr Abubakar Malami (SAN), also denied involvement even after 14 paraded suspects, including a fake Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), Lawrence Ajojo, fronted by the Police, pointed fingers at him.
In response to the development, the management of the Supreme Court, through its spokesperson, Festus Akande, said the raid, carried out “in a Gestapo manner that unfortunately depicted a gory picture of war by some armed persons suspected to be security operatives representing different agencies of Government, who seemed to have come to kill and maim their target under the guise of undertaking a search whose warrant” was questionable.
According to the apex court, “We are deeply saddened and taken aback by this uncivilized and shameful show of primitive force on an innocent judicial officer that has so far, spent several years of her productive life serving the country she calls her own”.
Also condemning the invasion, Former Niger Delta agitators said, “The coalition condemns in its entirety the recent aggression of Justice Mary Odili’s home in Abuja by agents of the Federal Government of Nigeria. We view this action as a ploy to intimidate, harass, humiliate and forcefully evict her from her current position in the Supreme Court of Nigeria.
“We can authoritatively say that the only offence of Justice Mary Odili is because she is the second-highest-ranking Judge in the Supreme Court of Nigeria, and she is from the Niger Delta region. The coalition rejects the claim by the government that suspicious activities were suspected in the building; this claim is baseless and unacceptable.
“We are compelled to ask, what kind of illegal activity could be suspected in a home of respected justice of the Supreme Court of Nigeria whose husband has also served as a state governor for eight years? What was the motive behind that invasion?” they queried.
The independence of the judiciary as outlined in Section 158 (1) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, as amended, contravenes the invasion of the residence of a Judge, which poses a threat to the rule of law. The lack of obedience to the rule of law has led to the dysfunctionality of society, where many feel that they are above the law.
In the instant case, the government has failed to justify its actions, and neither has it issued an apology to Justice Odili. Although the Supreme Court, in its reaction, said ‘enough is enough. However, the fact remains that if the constant hostility from the executive on the other arms of government is not appropriately addressed, Nigeria may merely be sitting on a keg of gun powder, waiting to explode.
Moving forward, the Court must redeem itself from being a political playground to where the rule of law is upheld. For sustainable democracy, the executive’s control of the country’s security forces must be curtailed through legislative reviews to make them less submissive to the executive, including being used for political manipulation.
