The Supreme Court, yesterday, described the invasion of Justice Mary Odili’s residence by unknown security operatives as impunity taken too far.
This is as the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has said the recent onslaught on the residence of Supreme Court judge, Justice Mary Odili was part of a grand design by the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) to hijack the 2023 elections “as it did in 2019.”
It said it has commenced a full-scale independent investigation to unravel the true masquerades behind the mystery as well as the real motives behind the whole incident.
The apex court, in a statement by its Director of Press and Information, Dr. Akande Festus, said that the attack was uncivilised and a shameful show of primitive force on an innocent judicial officer.
The court warned that the Judiciary should not be misconstrued by any individual or institution of government as the whipping child among the three arms of government.
The statement, read in part: “We are alarmed by the news of the unwarranted and despicable raid on the official residence of one of our senior justices in the Supreme Court, Hon. Justice Mary Peter Odili, on Friday, 29th October, 2021, in a Gestapo manner.
“The attack unfortunately depicted a gory picture of war by some armed persons suspected to be security operatives representing different agencies of government who seemed to have come to kill and maim their target under the guise of undertaking a search whose warrant was questionable and baseless.
“We are deeply saddened and taken aback by this uncivilised and shameful show of force on an innocent judicial officer that has spent several years of her productive life serving the country she calls her own.
“This incident brought back, rather painfully, the ugly memory of the October 2016 midnight invasion of the homes of our respected justices with no satisfactory explanations as to the true motive behind such brazen assault on our collective sensibility.
“We wish to make it abundantly clear that the Nigerian Judiciary is the third arm of the government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and should be respected and treated as such.
“We have had a full dosage of this fusillade of unwarranted and unprovoked attacks on our judicial officers, and even our facilities across the country, and we say, enough is enough.
“The Judiciary should never be construed by any individual or institution of government as the arm of government that must always be chastised and ridiculed into silence because of our conservative disposition.
“Though there have emerged discordant tunes from the various security agencies that allegedly participated in the dastardly act, we are not lying low on this dehumanizing treatment meted out to one of our own.
“We have commenced a full-scale independent investigation to unravel the true masquerades behind the mystery as well as the real motives behind the whole incident.”
He equally called on the Inspector-General of Police of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to rise up to the occasion by carrying out a discreet investigation and to make his findings known to the Nigerian public with a view to bringing the perpetrators to justice as quickly as possible.
Meanwhile, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has said the recent onslaught on the residence of Supreme Court judge, Justice Mary Odili was part of a grand design by the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) to hijack the 2023 elections “as it did in 2019.”
This is even as the party described the attack on Justice Odili as “horrendous, rascally, irresponsible, completely unjustified and should not be swept under the carpet on the guise of misleading whistleblower operation.”
In a statement, yesterday, signed by spokesman, Kola Ologbondiyan, the PDP noted that the paw prints of the APC “are visible in the incident, in its desperation to cow the Judiciary and subvert the cause of justice ahead of the 2023 elections.”
The statement read: “It is clear that the attack on Justice Odili is part of a renewed script by the APC. Nigerians will recall how, ahead of the 2019 election, former Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Walter Onnoghen, was clandestinely yanked off from his hallowed chamber, preparatory to the massive rigging that characterized the 2019 Presidential election.
“Nigerians can equally recall how respected judges were assaulted by the APC administration through obnoxious sting operations in a bid to arm-twist the Judiciary and set the stage for the endorsement of a culture of impunity that characterised the 2019 elections.
“The PDP, however, cautions the APC and its Presidency apparatchik to know that times have changed. Nigerians are not ready to stomach a repeat of APC’s coordinated assault on our institutions of democracy, but will firmly resist them with every means available within the ambit of the law.
“The party also urges the Judiciary to remain firm and not be deterred by the suppressive proclivities of the fizzling APC that has since been rejected by Nigerians.
“The PDP calls on Nigerians to stand in defence of our democracy by continuing in their demand that the real perpetrators of the attack on Justice Mary Odili be exposed and brought to book.”