Guardian

• Group wants S’Court justice investigated over alleged misconduct

A HUMAN rights group, Abuja Civil Society Forum (ACSF), Monday called on the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN) and Chairman of the National Judicial Council (NJC), Justice Mariam Aloma-Mukhtar, to investigate Justice Hope Ozoh of the Anambra State High Court, Awka, over allegations of abuse of office and subversion of justice.

The group, which regretted that Justice Ozoh’s ruling in the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) case has cast doubt on the CJN’s efforts to restore hope to Nigerians against injustice from the judiciary, said the NJC must look into the activities of some judges in order to bring due sanity to the judiciary.

Meanwhile, following conflicting reports from Justice Clara Ogunbiyi of the Supreme Court and the just retired judge of a Federal High Court, Justice Okechukwu Okeke, an advocacy group, Access to Justice (AJ), has also requested the NJC to thoroughly investigate the allegations of improper conduct or attempts to interfere with the proceedings before a Federal High Court.

AJ, in a statement by its Director, Joseph Otteh, is asking the NJC to investigate the allegations as contained in Justice Okeke’s valedictory speech to the effect that Ogunbiyi attempted to influence his decision in a case pending before his court in May 2013.

Coordinator of ACSF, Oyetakin Ebenezer, noted that the CJN and the NJC have demonstrated commitment to this stance by sanctioning erring judges, in addition to the promptness with which petitions against judges are now treated.

He added: “It is on this note that we are appealing to the CJN and NJC to immediately investigate the activities of Justice Hope O. Ozoh of the Awka Division of Anambra High Court, who has demonstrated beyond doubt through his actions that he answers to the Governor of Anambra State, Mr. Peter Obi, instead of upholding justice in line with the oath he took”.

According to the group, “Justice Ozoh flagrantly disregarded a subsistence order made by the Court of Appeal in Appeal Number CA/84/2013 of April 8, 2013, which ordered the stay of execution on the order of an Enugu State High Court. The High Court earlier stopped Victor Umeh from parading himself as chairman of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA).

“It is thus curious that the honourable justice agreed to entertain a suit over the legitimacy of a national convention of APGA when the leadership of the party, as recognised by the Court of Appeal order, was not present for the said exercise.”

At the valedictory court session in his honour, Okeke alleged that extra-judicial attempts were made to influence how he determined certain proceedings pending in his court before his retirement.

He insinuated that the attempts emanated from a serving Supreme Court justice, and that his recent censure by the NJC followed his refusal to vacate an order over which some representations had been allegedly made to him by the daughter of Justice Ogunbiyi, purportedly acting on her mother’s authority.

The group, therefore, urged the NJC to investigate whether Okeke’s allegations were founded and true and whether Ogunbiyi indeed initiated telephone conversations with the judge to express “fury” over his ruling in that pending proceeding.

 AJ also wants NJC to find out whether this imbroglio prompted the aforesaid Chief Judge to put a call to Okeke to convey Ogunbiyi’s alleged remonstrations against the order to the judge. More so, AJ is asking the NJC to determine whether what transpired violates the Code of Conduct for Judicial Officers (CCJO).   The group, therefore, urged the NJC to investigate whether Okeke’s allegations were founded and true and whether Ogunbiyi indeed initiated telephone conversations with the judge to express “fury” over his ruling in that pending proceeding.

AJ also wants NJC to find out whether this imbroglio prompted the aforesaid Chief Judge to put a call to Okeke to convey Ogunbiyi’s alleged remonstrations against the order to the judge. More so, AJ is asking the NJC to determine whether what transpired violates the Code of Conduct for Judicial Officers (CCJO).