The Street Like Attitude Of CCT Chairman” And “The Biafran Boy”

TheNigeriaLawyer Editorial

A video surfaced online recently where the Chairman of Code of Conduct Tribunal, Danladi Umar was caught violently assaulting a security guard at Banex Plaza in Abuja.

TheNigerialawyer’s findings showed that the pandemonium started with an altercation between Mr Danladi and the guard over a parking space on the Banex premises on Monday. Mr Danladi was said to have arrived at the premises at about noon on Monday for a phone repair. On getting to the premises, his driver had parked at an open parking space, but the guard who sighted them from a distance insisted they could not park there. The CCT chairman insisted that he would not pull out of the parking lot.

The verbal exchange between them, which drew a crowd to the scene, later reportedly degenerated into a physical attack on the guard by the CCT chairman. Mr. Danladi attacked the guard, Clement Sagwak from Plateau State, with slaps after those that accompanied him to the shopping complex had physically assaulted the helpless security guard.

According to an eyewitness account, “Sagwak only requested Mr Danladi Umar to park his car very well at the car park of Banex Plaza, only for CCT Chairman to slapped him, pulled him down and severally inflict bodily harm on the security guard”.

“The CCT Chairman, Umar Danladi was on the verge of almost further hitting the young security guard with a dangerous object gotten from his car, only for tenants and his colleagues at Banex Plaza intervened and stopped him from further assaulting and violently attacking the young security guard.”

Consequently, the legal services of Abuja based legal luminary, Ihensekhien Samuel Jnr. who was sent by One Love Foundation, swiftly intervened and made legal representations at the Maitama police station under the FCT Police Command where the CCB Chairman, Mr. Umar Danladi had gone to lay complaint against the security guard.

 

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The Chairman, Code of Conduct Tribunal, Umar Danladi, in reacting to the viral video denied the allegation via a statement signed by his media aide and that he was assaulted and not the other way round. In the said statement sighted by THENIGERIALAWYER , extracting from the clarification, it was noted therein that if the Chairman had wanted to cause trouble or intimidate anyone, he would have gone prepared. At this point one would begin to wonder, if Mr. Danladi had gone prepared he would have destroyed the guard and burnt down the Plaza. Better still, one would wonder if Mr. Danladi knows what is demand of him as Judge of high repute. Well, one could not wonder much as assaulting the less privileged by Government appointees and High Profile Personalities have become the norm, a precedent and a New Normal in Nigeria. It is indeed Sad!

Furthermore, Mr. Danladi’s statement on the incidence is destructive, devastating and capable of breeding ethnic crisis. In any sane society, a person alleged to have committed this magnitude of crime is unfit to occupy Public office and would have resigned honourably or suspended from office. The bitter truth is that, in Nigeria,  the reverse is the case.

He went on to state that the Police men seen in the video clip were not the Chairman’s police team , rather they were policemen operating around the plaza whom at first instance intervened before the arrival of police team from Maitama Police station. As the few policemen in the complex were apparently overwhelmed by the mob, consisting of BIAFRAN boys throwing matches and sharp object to his car, which led to deep cut and dislocation in one of his finger, causing damage to his car, smashing his windscreen. Mr Danladi claimed he attempted to leave the scene, but a BIAFRAN boy ordered for the closure of the gate thereby assaulting him before the arrival of police team from Maitama police station.

It is crystal clear that the statement released by Mr Danladi does not reflect what we saw in the viral video which is unbecoming of a judicial officer and that the word “BIAFRAN BOY” used in the statement released is not only misleading but provocative, uncalled for and capable of plunging the Nation into an irredeemable Crisis if care is not employed. Referring to the security guard as a “BIAFRAN BOY” is not just offensive but also unlawful as it implies that the security guard is from the eastern part of Nigeria and that he belongs to the proscribed group, IPOB which has been declared to be unlawful by a court of competent jurisdiction. And one would further ask, what would have egged Mr. Danladi to import “BIAFRIAN BOYS” into his press release?

Moving on, apart from the fact that the statement was poorly written, the security guard, Clement Sagwak is from Plateau state and not the eastern part of the country which raises question as to why the CCT chairman kept referring to him as “BIAFRAN BOY”, what does Biafra mean in this context of this matter? If the person involved is a member of the Yoruba race, would he refer to him as Oduduwa, would he have done the same thing, if an Hausa/Fulani is involved?

For Mr Danladi, mentioning Biafra get him out of this irresponsible and unpardonable misconduct he had got himself into. Hence, he foolishly wants people to believe the lies he has told in the name of a defence that the boy he assaulted is “Biafra”

Matters like this which involve misconduct of a judicial officer is meant to be determined by the National Judicial Council but sometimes ago, he claimed he was not a judicial officer as he is only answerable to the president but in view of that going by the provisions of Article 17(3) of the Part 1 of the 5th Schedule which is also reproduced verbatim in Section 22(3) of the CCB Act, it provides for the removal of the CCT Chairman either on the grounds of infirmity of the body or mind or gross misconduct.

It is clear that the disgraceful actions of Mr Danladi as exhibited in the viral video clip is without no doubt a gross misconduct and also unworthy of someone holding a judicial office. Therefore, he should step down or resigned from his position.