*Says Is Also Aimed At Beating Judges To The Whims And Caprices Of The Executive
*Says NBA Will Get To The Root Of The Matter
*Calls On NBA And BOSAN To Reach Out To Heads Of Court For Possible Abolition Of Signing Of Blank Warrants
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A human rights lawyer, Mr Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa (SAN), has said that lawlessness and impunity have found their ways to the corridors of power in Nigeria.
In an interview with the PUNCH Newspaper, the Senior Advocate of Nigeria said the raid of Home Of Hon. Justice Mary Peter-Odili is an attempt to Intimidate Judges and compel them to do the bidding of the executive arm of government.
“I think it speaks to the times that we are in our beloved country, where impunity and lawlessness seem to have found their way into the corridors of power. If you recall, this happened in 2016 when there was a midnight raid on the homes of justices of the Supreme Court and till now, nobody has been brought to justice even though the judges have since been vindicated of any allegation and this probably led to the death of Justice Sylvester Ngwuta, who passed away before his retirement.
“This is only a signpost of the intolerance of this particular administration to judicial independence and autonomy. We have had a running battle to have judges get their salaries and allowances directly from the Consolidated Revenue Fund. As we speak, the EFCC and other security agencies always breathe down the necks of judges in matters involving the government. And so, we believe that the present All Progressives Congress government is intolerant of opposition and the invasion of Justice Odili’s residence is only a signpost of the desire to intimidate judges and beat them to the whims and caprices of the executive.” Adegboruwa said
Regarding denials of involvement in the raid of the residence of the Supreme Court Justice by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), the Inspector General of Police and the Attorney-General of the Federation, the human rights lawyer said he is not convinced. However, he noted that the Nigerian Bar Association, NBA, will get to the root of the matter
He said, “The problem is that everyone is distancing themselves from the despicable invasion. The AGF, the IG and the EFCC have denied but we have video clips of armed security operatives, who invaded the place. So, what this means is that even if there is a genuine reason to issue a search warrant, this rogue action has thrown a lot of questions on the validity and authenticity of any such process, which in turn will affect the administration of justice, because even when genuine search warrants are issued, people will question them now that people can invade the house of a senior judge without identity.
“Personally, I don’t accept the denials of the AGF, the EFCC and the IG. But for us at the Nigerian Bar Association, we have resolved to get to the root of this matter and lawyers have through the association set up a committee and we have taken far reaching decisions about the principal actors involved in this act; namely the magistrate, the policemen and lawyers, who applied for the search warrant and indeed the office of the AGF, where the recovery panel is said to be domiciled. We also resolved that we must ask the National Judicial Council to take proactive steps to protect judges.”
On why magistrates are always the preferred choice of security agencies for search warrants and arrest warrants, Adegboruwa said the magistrates have the practice of signing blank arrest warrants, blank search warrants and even blank orders to freeze the accounts of citizens of Nigeria ex parte. They sign those papers and the security agencies will just go and fill in the names of innocent Nigerians. He said this opportunity has thrown up a challenge for lawyers, both in the NBA and the Body of Senior Advocates, to interact with the heads of courts all over Nigeria to abolish that odious practice, which breaches the rights of citizens.
“Well, we have had audience with the relevant authorities in charge of the judiciary in the Federal Capital Territory, mainly the chief judge, and we have expressed our displeasure over the practice of magistrates signing blank arrest warrants, blank search warrants and even blank orders to freeze the accounts of citizens of Nigeria ex parte. They sign those papers and the security agencies will just go and fill in the names of innocent Nigerians, freeze their account behind their backs, arrest them, search their houses and so we are taking a holistic step in this regard to reform the system to prohibit henceforth any magistrate or judicial officer from signing blank documents for the arrest of citizens, or the search of houses of citizens, or for the freezing of the accounts of citizens.
“This opportunity has thrown up a challenge for lawyers, both in the NBA and the Body of Senior Advocates, to interact with the heads of courts all over Nigeria to abolish that odious practice, which breaches the rights of citizens. So, we are taking a holistic step to reform and be able to abolish that system whereby the vested interest and rights of Nigerians can be violated behind their backs through ex parte blank orders or search or arrest orders. I can assure you that after this, the practice will come to an end.
“It is not just because of Justice Odili’s status. Common citizens in Nigeria and the hinterland are suffering in the hands of the EFCC, the police and other security agencies on account of the capricious actions of magistrates, who are signing these warrants. And we do not accept the excuse by the magistrate that he was fooled, because no magistrate should put himself in a position that he would be fooled in any way whatsoever. And that is why we have made a decision to file a formal charge against the magistrate before the Judicial Service Commission. The NBA has resolved to do that. At our national executive council meeting held on Tuesday, we resolved to file a formal complaint against the magistrate; we resolved to file a formal complaint against the AGF and we resolved to engage the NJC to protect judicial officers.” Adegboruwa said
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