FG And The Rule Of Law

The rule of law is an essential ingredient for the survival of any society, particularly in a democratic setting. Those who postulated the rule of law theory strongly believe that it is the fulcrum of good governance and essentially, the protection of the fundamental human rights of the citizenry. Thus, a government that ignores this essential ingredient does so at its own peril.
Ostensibly, this is where the recent outburst of the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Walter Onnoghen comes handy.
The CJN, while speaking at the opening session of the 2017 All Nigeria Judges Conference in Abuja, with President Muhammadu Buhari personally in attendance, berated the executive arm of government and its agencies for disobeying court judgements and orders.
Onnoghen insisted that obedience to court orders remains a sine qua non to a virile democracy, as well as a strong motivation for the fight against corruption and entrenchment of the rule of law in the country.
He charged the Federal Government to take its cue from countries like Kenya and the United States of America, where there is strict adherence to the rule of law, with their Presidents and government agencies respecting court decisions that are against the interest of the government in power.
The CJN demanded total independence of the judiciary from other arms of the government, particularly the executive.
The Tide agrees no less with the CJN going by the obvious fact that the Buhari administration is fast acquiring notoriety for its flagrant abuse of the rule of law and the frequent display of executive rascality and lawlessness.
We say this because there are glaring cases of abuse of the rule of law on the part of the present Federal Government and its agencies.
The continued detention of former National Security Adviser (NSA) to former President Goodluck Jonathan, Col. Sambo Dasuki (rtd) and the unlawful incarceration of the Leader of the Islamic Movement of Nigeria, Sheikh Ibrahim El-Zakzaky and his wife, in spite of several court orders for their release, are few examples of executive rascality by the Buhari administration.
The treatment of various court orders on their release with disdain is creating dangerous impression that the Buhari-led Federal Government is not operating under the rule of law.
We do not need to remind the Federal Government that under the current political dispensation, a citizen cannot be detained beyond 24 hours without a remand order issued by a magistrate court pursuant to Section 293 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act and anything contrary to outright abuse of the rule of law.
It is against this backdrop that we consider the CJN’s apparent criticism of the government as timely and heart-warming, bearing in mind that it was coming from the nation’s Number One judicial officer. The CJN’s pronouncement, therefore, should serve as a wake-up call for the Buhari administration to retrace its step from dictatorial tendencies capable of creating tension and anarchy in the country.
We want to remind the President that unlike in the days of the military dictatorship when despotism and tyranny thrived, the rule of law is sacrosanct in a democracy. He is, therefore, duty bound to subject himself and his government to the rule of law and democratic tenets.
We warn that any further disobedience of court order by the Federal Government might push the citizens to resort to self help and ipso facto, anarchy.
It is imperative, therefore, that President Buhari guards against the tendency of his government slipping into this quagmire, taking cognizance of the fact that he swore to an oath of office to defend the nation’s Constitution at all times.
Indeed, we commend the CJN for his courage and boldness in speaking the truth to the President and urge other Nigerians to pick up the gauntlet and speak against the impunity of the present administration.