Lawmaker Faults Justice Salami’s Suspension

A constitutional lawyer, Mr. Chigbo Ewenzor, said the National Judicial Council (NJC) goofed in suspending Justice Ayo Salami, President of the Court of Appeal.

The Council suspended Salami based on the reports of two committees it set up to investigate allegations made by the Court of Appeal President that the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Aloysius Katsina-Alu, interfered in the 2007 governorship election petition in Sokoto State.

Ewenzor, (APGA, Onitsha North, Constituency 1) in the Anambra State House of Assembly, said last  Saturday in Onitsha that what the NJC did was sending a wrong signal about the judiciary and setting a precedent.

The lawmaker explained that everybody was under the rule of the law; more so for the highest judicial body in the country that should uphold the principle of the rule of law to its letter and spirit.

He said that NJC should have withheld its sanctions or punitive measures against Justice Salami pending the determination of the suit filed by Salami against the Council.

He said: “It is quite unfortunate in the sense that the whole thing started in very dramatic manner; and after that we know that Justice Salami went to court to challenge the decision of the NJC asking him to apologise to Justice Kastina-Alu.

“As a lawyer primarily, that was part of what we were taught in the law school and what we have found in decided cases, particularly the case between Ojukwu and the governor of Lagos State.

“In that case, it was clearly stated that once a dispute had been submitted to the court of law by one of the parties, every other party must await the decision of the court of law and no action must be taken to pre-empt that decision.

“Therefore, when the NJC came up with the decision; NJC is a body that can be taken to court and this man has gone to court to challenge the decision of the NJC. And they are aware of that court process and they have been served that court process.

“Therefore, they are enjoined to wait for the court intervention. The court has the right to decide on matters brought to it.

“The NJC went beyond its powers in spite of a suit challenging its decision, to go ahead to suspend Justice Salami.

“We are sending bad signs to the entire Nigerians and the entire international community; when the highest body, NJC, cannot respect court processes.’’

NJC also directed Justice Salami to hand over the affairs of the court to the next most senior Justice and recommended his retirement to President Goodluck Jonathan.