The Chairman of the Presidential Advisory Committee against Corruption, Prof Itse Sagay, SAN, has reacted to the Supreme court judgment in the case of former governor of Abia State, Orji Uzo Kalu, and others, who were in December convicted and sentenced for N7.1bn fraud.

Prof. Sagay while expressing his displeasure over the verdict said the judgment is a great disservice to this country.

Prof. Sagay in responding to the reason given by the Supreme court for nullifying the earlier verdict given by the Justice Mohammed Idris of Federal High Court said that there is no specific section of the constitution that says when a judge is elevated to a higher court he is barred from continuing hearing pending cases before his elevation.

Justice Olabode Rhodes-Vivour who led the court was of the view that Justice Mohammed Idris, who conducted the trial, was no longer a judge of the Federal High Court as at the time he sat and delivered the judgement that convicted the defendants for allegedly stealing about N7.65billion from Abia state treasury.

He said, “I think this judgment is a great disservice to this country. It’s a great setback because it drags us back into the iniquity of cases that have no end without any good reason at all.”

The constitutional lawyer noted that the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, 2015 allowed judges to continue with pending cases because of the “grave disadvantages” that had been noticed with regard to the interpretation of the Supreme Court.

“We found, in many cases, judges had spent up to five to seven years on a case, they were promoted and then they could not continue with it. A new judge would start and the case would begin all over again. It was killing our judicial system. That’s why the National Assembly passed that law under the ACJA.

“I’m not aware that the constitution specifically outlaws it. In my view, if the Supreme Court had interpreted that situation in that manner previously, that is interpreted to mean that, once you’re promoted, you cannot continue with cases in a lower court.

“(But if) the National Assembly then passes a law that grants the authority to that judge, I think the Supreme Court doesn’t have the power to insist on its own interpretation by referring to the constitution, which has no such provisions,” he added.

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