October 20, 2016.
The travesty of justice that has befallen Nigeria and her judicial system is very alarming, if Nigerians should sit and fold their arms watching as these events unfold then doomsday is near.
The recent crackdown on judges under a false pretence of corrupt judges is just another tyrannical show of force in Nigeria.
Corruption has seemed to be ignored in Nigeria in the past and nothing can be done now to redeem her from the plague that has befallen her, Corruption dwells in the heart of the country and in the mind of every politician or civil servant found in any office today, Corruption is the root and foundation upon which the country was built, corruption is and was part of the blueprint of Nigeria from the past colonial masters.
The only reason why it has continued to thrive is because Nigerians care less about what their leaders do, they are absolutely indifferent to any actions of their leaders, they have unconsciously nurtured this cancerous plague as a result of their silence giving room for it to spread like wildfire, a country where a single politician will openly syphon massive amounts of public funds we talking billions of dollars in a minute being embezzled, funds meant for public purposes, it doesn't stop there, we have seen contracts being hijacked by corporate institutions and abandoned without even starting it.
Corruption in Nigeria over the years have managed to become a norm in the Nigerian society, the police force, the army, the civil defence, government bodies and private institutions have all been infected with the disease, and this has played a huge role in drowning the country.
The president Muhammadu Buhari and his administration may be giving the impression of fighting corruption but the fact remains that this government is as corrupt as previous administrations or perhaps the most corrupt the country has ever had, Buhari is an angel, He is obviously a corrupt individual, being the president and at the same time the minister of Nigerian National Petroleum Commission (NNPC) for several months before appointing a new minister to head the commission and billions of Naira reportedly looted under his watch has made him abruptly corrupt and as such cannot be treated any different.
The recent clampdown on judges is nothing but a covert mission, a Gestapo style arrest on judges who had issued bail in the past for Buhari's political oppositions the likes of IPOB's Nnamdi Kanu and Sambo Dasuki, The president's show of force and Tyranny has taken a new height, therefore, setting the country on fire.
Kanu was granted bail on December 17, 2015. in Justice Adeniyi Ademola's court but was refused to be released by the Department of State Security(DSS), Nigeria's own CIA on the orders of the president after coming live on national TV to tell Nigerians that Kanu will not be released simply because he came into the country without a document but evidence from the court today proved that to be false because according to the evidence provided to the court Kanu entered the country with his dual citizenship, a British and Nigerian passports all belonging to him.
The case was further transferred to the Federal High court Abuja and Justice John Tsoho was called upon to take up the case, As the presiding Judge who has gone through Kanu's case file and having seen that he was previously granted bail by a competent court of jurisdiction seemingly ignored that and in the process looking for ways to convict Kanu despite lack evidence of the charges brought against him, Justice Tsoho decided to embark on a journey of satisfying his paymasters after allegedly being bribed with huge sums of money from the federal government in return to jail Kanu with or without evidence.
Justice Tsoho on the 19th of February 2016 during a hearing session overruled a secret trial for the accused but surprisingly came back to the same court on the 7th of March 2016 and reconsidered his previous ruling for a secret trial and a masked witness, after allegedly collecting N100 million bribe from the DSS to jail Kanu at all cost. In the world of professional legal practice when a presiding judge makes a "U-turn" against his previous ruling without an application for reconsideration when such a thing happens and rumours of bribe comes up an investigation is immediately carried out and the accused judge sanctioned for gross impunity.
Therefore, Justice John Tsoho MUST be thoroughly investigated and sacked for the Nigerian judiciary to regain her freedom and dignity, Hence, John Tsoho, Buhari and the DSS are making a mockery of the National Judicial Council (NJC), until Tsoho is sacked from office the NJC will continue to suffer more of such tragedy.
Besides, the next judge, Justice Binta Nyako who been assigned to take up the case will probably thread the same path and the same fate will befall him and so on, it is only a matter of time before the NJC loses its freedom and become another tool of oppression like the DSS.
The NJC must hold an emergency session to save the judiciary, they must condemn the recent crackdown on judges and they MUST sack Justice John Tsoho to set an example, they must go on strike and close down every courtroom in protest of the recent events, they must realise that they have the real power, not the president or the DSS, they must stand up now against this injustice or become victims of oppression.
Nigerians may choose to speak up now or remain silent forever and suffer this coming tragedy.
By Uchechi Collins
For IPOB writers
0 comments so far,add yours