NJC Sends Probe Report on Onnoghen, Acting CJN to Buhari
The National Judicial Council has concluded investigation into the petitions written against the suspended Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Walter Onnoghen, and the acting CJN, Justice Tanko Muhammad.
A statement by the Director, Information, NJC, Mr. Soji Oye, said on Wednesday that the council had sent its report to President Muhammadu Buhari.
It, however, said the NJC considered it inappropriate to share the report with the public before Buhari received it.
It said before communicating its findings to Buhari, the NJC held an emergency meeting on Wednesday where it reviewed the report of the five-man committee headed by a retired Justice of the Supreme Court, Justice S.A. Akande, which investigated the allegations of misconduct levelled against the two top judicial officers.
The allegations were contained in the petitions, including the one sent by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission against Onnoghen.
EFCC, through its acting Chairman, Mr. Ibrahim Magu, had sent two petitions dated February 4, 2019, and March 5, 2019, to the NJC, accusing Onnoghen of “financial impropriety, infidelity to the Constitution and other economic and financial crimes-related laws.”
Two other petitions by a former President of the Nigerian Bar Association, Dr. Olisa Agbakoba (SAN), and the Actions Peoples Party were sent against Muhammad, accusing him of illegally submitting himself to be sworn in by President Buhari as the acting CJN.
The NJC, however, said it did not investigate the petition containing allegations relating to asset declaration levelled against Onnoghen.
The petition, which the NJC refrained from considering, was by a civil society group, the Anti-Corruption and Research-Based Data Initiative, and its Executive Director, Mr. Dennis Aghanya.
The NJC said it refrained from considering the petition because it would be sub judice to do so because it was the subject matter of the ongoing trial of Onnoghen at the Code of Conduct Tribunal.
The council’s statement partly read, “The Council reached a decision on the petitions written by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and others and conveyed its decision to President Muhammadu Buhari, GCFR.
“The Council also resolved that, by the nature of the decision reached, it would be inappropriate to publicise it before conveying it to Mr President.”
The NJC had at its February 13, 2019 meeting reviewed the pre-assessment report on the petitions written against Onnoghen and Muhammad and considered the complaints worthy of being investigated.
The council then set up the five-man panel led by Akande to investigate the petitions and issued queries to the judicial officers.
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