Skip to main content

NBA condemns raid on Justice Odili’s home, takes protest to AGF, security chiefs

Oredola Adeola

 

The Nigerian Bar Association, NBA has condemned the unlawful siege on the Abuja residence of  Justice Mary  Peter-Odili,  Justice of the Supreme Court of Nigeria, on Friday night by officers of the Nigerian security agencies. This was contained in a statement by the NBA President, Olumide Akpata, in reaction to the raid.

 

According to the NBA President,  I received with grave concern the news of the raid which erode the independence of sacred democratic institutions like the Judiciary, undermine the rule of law in Nigeria.  


Akpata said he would be convening an emergency meeting of the NBA National Executive Committee solely to discuss this issue and take a definitive stand on behalf of the NBA, vowing to lead a delegation to the AGF, Mr. Abubakar Malami, and the relevant heads of security agencies to seek further clarification on the circumstances of this incident.



He said, “Almost 24 hours later, information concerning the basis of the siege remains hazy and the subject of speculation, apart from reports that the invasion was pursuant to a search warrant issued by a Magistrate Court in Abuja, which search warrant has now been revoked.


“Attorney-General of the Federation under whose office the team that purportedly carried out the raid is allegedly domiciled has also denounced the team, which suggests the inference that the residence of the second most senior judicial officer in Nigeria was raided by rogue security agencies. The grave implications of this possibility leave a lot to be desired.


“When viewed in the context of a similar raid on the premises of Supreme Court Justices in 2016, the rationale of which was never fully explained or indeed justified, the NBA interprets last night's incident as a part of an orchestrated affront on the Judiciary, designed to intimidate and ridicule the Judiciary. The NBA will no longer allow this to continue.


“In case the law enforcement agencies have not learnt their lessons, events like this do nothing but erode the independence of sacred democratic institutions like the Judiciary, undermine the rule of law in Nigeria, and set the country back in the quest to instill confidence in citizens of Nigeria, Nigerian businesses, and foreign investors that Nigeria operates a democracy with an independent Judiciary.


“I have spoken with My Lord, Peter-Odili JSC and I am happy to report that she is alive and well. Beyond that however, it is my pledge to Nigerians that the NBA will get to the root of this matter.

 

The NBA President insisted that the Friday night’s raid was an affront on the Judiciary and grossly undermines the democracy that we profess to practice. Promising to act in line with the aims and objectives of the NBA to convene an emergency meeting of the NBA National Executive Committee solely to discuss this issue and take a definitive stand on behalf of the NBA.


NBA, according to the President, will ensure that all those responsible for this unfortunate incident are brought to book, adding that the Association will do all that is required to safeguard the independence of Judiciary and protect the country’s hard-won democracy.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

MMA is a disgrace to Nigeria, the designer is a traitor – Tunde Alabi-Hundeyin writes VP Osinbajo

Oredola Adeola|  Movie and Documentary producer, Tunde Alabi-Hundeyin Dudu, has exposed the level of rot at the Muritala Muhammed Airport, Lagos in an open letter written to Professor Yemi Osinbajo, Vice President. In the letter, the Documentary photographer, disclosed that the arrival system in Muritala Muhammed airport is a disgrace to Nigeria. He particularly noted that Nigeria has no aviation Minister, adding that whosoever designed the arrival system in MMA is a traitor. Tunde Alabi-Hundeyin He said, “Sir I’m directing my comments to you because I’m aware you toured that airport before the elections. They showed you the glittering lounges . However when you arrive in Nigeria or you go to receive someone arriving, it’s a horror story. It’s a total disgrace. Let me explain. “I had cause to go and welcome someone coming in from the US. We parked in the designated car park. Then the obstacles started. The path you have to trek to get to the front of the arrival hal...
1 comment
Read more

2019 Hajj: Six Nigerian pilgrims die in Saudi Arabia

A middle aged woman, pilgrim from Lagos State, slumped and died in the early hours of Sunday morning in Mecca during the devil stoning ritual at Jamarat Aqaba, outside Mina, thereby bringing the number of Nigerian pilgrims that have died in this year’s Hajj in Saudi Arabia to six(6). The National Hajj Commission of Nigeria confirmed the death of the Nigerian pilgrims in Saudi Arabia . Dr Ibrahim Kana , Chairman, National Medical Team, released the figure in Madinah from the commission ’s National Medical Team Electronic Health Medical Records. The Commission had earlier said, “ So far , Nigeria has lost six pilgrims including four females and two males ; out of which one died in Madina while the remaining four died in the city of Makkah. “ They all died of various illnesses including heart and lung diseases. “ Records shows that so far in both Makkah and Madina , we have made 10,485 diagnoses with Makkah accounting for over 60 per cent. “ Additionally , 108 referrals wer...
Post a Comment
Read more

Ajaokuta Steel plant up for sale again!

Oredola Adeola| The Federal Government through its ongoing privatisation programme has put Ajaokuta Steel Company up for sale. This was confirmed by Godwin Emefiele, Central Bank of Nigeria, Governor while briefing the Nigerian delegation at the end of the International Monetary Fund/ World Bank Group meetings in Bali, Indonesia on Sunday. The CBN Governor disclosed that the privatisation programme is coordinated by the National Council on Privatisation, while the Bureau of Public Enterprise (BPE) will be conducting a total review of the process of privatisation and payment for the steel industry to pave way for investors. He further stated that some of the country’s assets have been up for sale, under the ongoing privatisation programme, with the aim of raising more funds to finance the 2018 deficit-based budget.  Recall that work commenced on the steel plant in 1979 and over $10 billion is estimated to have been spent on it so far. A recent audit report revealed that...
1 comment
Read more