Leadership (Abuja)
Golu Timothy
9 August 2008
Abuja — African students under the auspices of the West Africa Students Union (WASU), have expressed worry over the weakening profile of the judiciary in Nigeria,calling on the president of the Appeal Court , Justice Mustapha Abdullahi to intervene to save the image of the noble profession from collapse.
While noting the importance of Nigeria in the ECOWAS sub-region, WASU said if Nigeria failed to provide the needed leadership role, especially in the areas of credible election and transparent judicial system, the region would be faced with a lot of problems.
Daniel Onjeh, president of WASU, who was speaking against the backdrop of recent rulings by the Appeal Court judges on the governorship elections in the country which tended to favour the candidates of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), said the Appeal Court divisions of Abuja, Kaduna, Enugu and Plateau States called for special appraisal.
Onjeh pointed out that there was no gainsaying the fact that unpopular rulings have gradually become a recurring decimal at the Nigerian Appeal Court as evident most recently in the Jos Appeal Court , noting that, "most failed states of Africa today can be attributed solely to electoral politics and their attendant crises"
Lamenting the rulings of some Appeal Court judges, especially that of Justice Bukachuwa, the body said that it was apprehensive the same judge may be assigned to preside in the cases of Com. Adams Oshiomhole and Olusegun Mimiko coming up in the Appeal Court , Benin , Edo State .
Speaking further, Onjeh, who hails from Benue State, said that similar ploy being hatched to dislodge the only non-PDP member representing the Otukpo/Ohimini federal constituency in the House of Representatives, Hon. Nelson Alapa should not be allowed as it may cause bad blood in the state.
He alleged that an aide to the Senate president, one Hon. Agbo Ogah, was bent on scuttling the victory of Hon. Alapa, and has dragged him to the Court of Appeal sitting in Jos.
According to him, since the outcome of the Otukpo and Ohimini local government areas elections were never in contention by both Alhaji Usman Abubakar of ANPP and David Mark of PDP, and the federal constituency elections took place concurrently with the senatorial elections where Hon. Alapa, though from the same LGA as Sen. Mark but in ANPP and Hon. Agbo Ogah of PDP, it is only natural that the results should tally.
"But in spite of this logical sequence, we are alarmed by the rumours making the rounds that the chief of staff to the president of Senate is bent on seizing the opportunity of being in the corridors of power to influence the pending Appeal Court judgement in Jos.
"We call on the president of the Court of Appeal, Justice Mustapha Abdullahi to note the bad eggs that are gradually dragging the integrity of the judiciary to a state of disrepute.
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