The NBA president expressed shock over ex-senator Mr Bulkachuwa's confession of influencing his wife's decision as appeal court judge, and called for his prosecution.
The Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) has described as shocking the confession of a former senator, Adamu Bulkachuwa, on how he influenced the decisions of his wife, Zainab Bulkachuwa, while she was the President of the Court of Appeal.
In the NBA's first public comment on the event that took place during the 9th Senate's valedictory session on Saturday, the association's president, Yakubu Maikyau, said in a statement Wednesday that he watched the video clip of Mr Bulkachuwa's confession with "with utter shock and disgust".
Mr Maikyau, who noted that the National Judicial Council (NJC) similarly condemned Mr Bulkachuwa's conduct at its meeting on Wednesday, called for the investigation and prosecution of the former senator, vowing that "the NBA will at all times rise to the defence of the honour, integrity and independence of the judiciary."
"It is in this regard that I call on the Inspector General of Police (IGP) and the Chairman of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), to immediately invite Senator Ahmad Muhammad Bulkachuwa for interrogation and proceed to prosecute him accordingly," Mr Maikyau, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), wrote.
He said he would follow up his call with "a letter to both the IGP and the ICPC Chairman in this respect."
"We reiterate our commitment to the maintenance and defence of the integrity and independence of the Judiciary in Nigeria, within the bounds of the law, irrespective of the personalities involved," the NBA president stated.
NBA's reaction came on Wednesday, four days after Mr Bulkachuwa confessed during the valedictory session of the 9th session, which was held on Saturday.
The video clip, which emerged on the Internet on Monday, showed Mr Bulkachuwa, who failed to secure a re-election to the Senate, saying to his colleagues, "I look at faces in this chamber whom have come to me and sought for my help when my wife was the President of the Court of Appeal."
Then Senate President Ahmad Lawan, who presided over the valedictory proceedings, shocked by the comments, had to interrupt the submissions of the 83-year-old.
But Mr Bulkachuwa defiantly expressed his concluding thoughts on the matter before conceding to Mr Lawan's call on him to desist.
Concluding remarks, the former senator said, "And I must thank particularly, my wife, whose freedom and independence I encroached upon while she was in office, and she has been very tolerant and accepted my encroachment, and extended her help to my colleagues..."
Mr Bulkachuwa's wife, who retired from the Court of Appeal's bench in 2020, was vested with enormous power and influence over electoral cases as then President of the Court of Appeal.As the President of the Court of Appeal, she had the sole responsibility to constitute all tribunals and courts that adjudicated on all election petitions that arose from the 2019 general elections, including the presidential poll.
She could reconstitute panels or replace members of the various tribunals and courts in deserving situations.
It was also her responsibility to constitute the Court of Appeal's panels that also adjudicated on the appeals against the decisions of election petition tribunals on the governorship, state House of Assembly and the National Assembly elections.
The Court of Appeal, which Mrs Bulkachuwa superintended during the time her husband said he secured her help to the advantage of many of his colleagues in the Senate, is the final arbiter on state House of Assembly and National Assembly elections.
The NBA president said Mr Bulkachuwa's claim of helping his colleagues to influence the decisions of his wife during her time as the Court of Appeal president "were clearly admissions by the Senator, that he did attempt to, and/or actually perverted the course of justice/interfered with due administration of justice..."
This, Mr Maikyau noted, "makes him liable to be investigated and prosecuted even on his admission."
Impact of Bulkachuwa's comments on judiciary
Dwelling further on Mr Bulkachuwa's remarks, the NBA President said they have had a "huge negative impact on the integrity and the independence of the judiciary."
Mr Maikyau, as a member of the NJC, said he complained to the council about the "rather disgusting and despicable conduct of Senator Bulkachuwa". He added that the act constituted "a direct attack on the integrity of the judiciary."
He said the NJC "condemned the actions of the Senator in the strongest terms as an affront on the integrity and independence of the judiciary."I made it clear to the Council that, while the NBA will at all times rise to the defence of the honour, integrity and independence of the judiciary, we shall not hesitate to take on anyone, either within or outside the legal profession, who takes steps or makes statements that are capable of undermining the independence of the judiciary and the impartiality judicial processes."
A former president of the NBA, Olisa Agbakoba, a SAN, said the lawmaker's revelation was a blight on Nigeria's judiciary.
In the same way, a former chairman of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), Chidi Odinkalu, a law professor, called for an independent inquiry into the issue.
READ NBA'S STATEMENT IN FULL
STATEMENT BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE NIGERIAN BAR ASSOCIATION, MR YAKUBU CHONOKO MAIKYAU, OON, SAN, ON THE COMMENTS BY SENATOR ADAMU MUHAMMAD BULKACHUWA ON THE FLOOR OF THE SENATE ON MONDAY, 12 JUNE 2023
14 June 2023
My attention was drawn to a viral video clip on the social media, of the comments made by
Senator Adamu Muhammad Bulkachuwa on the floor of the Senate on Monday, 12 June
2023, at the valedictory session of the Senate of the 9th Assembly, before he was interrupted
and stopped by the then Senate President Ahmed Lawan. Senator Bulkachuwa, in his
remarks, amongst other things, referred to "confidential dealings" he had had with some of
his colleagues in the Senate, and went on to say: "I look at faces in this chamber whom have come to me and sought for my help when my wife was the President of the Court of Appeal, and I'm sure...
In his concluding remarks, he said: "And I must thank particularly, my wife, whose freedom and independence I encroached upon while she was in office, and she has been very tolerant and accepted my encroachment, and extended her help to my colleagues..."
All these were amidst several interjections by the Senate President. Probably, if the Senate President had not interrupted Senator Bulkachuwa, he would have made more vital/useful revelations that would have provided specific details of the "confidential dealings of one sort or the other" he allegedly had with some of his colleagues in which according to him, "I did my best and in most cases I succeeded". Notwithstanding however, given the office held by his wife which he clearly mentioned in his remarks, no one would be left in doubt as to the sort of help he either succeeded or did not succeed in securing for his colleagues, with whom he had since become good friends and still remain good friends. These colleagues, according to him, only "thanked me for what I have done with words of mouth, that was all."
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The statements were clearly admissions by the Senator, that he did attempt to, and/or actually perverted the course of justice/interfered with due administration of justice, which makes him liable to be investigated and prosecuted even on his admission. That this came with a huge negative impact on the integrity and the independence of the Judiciary can only be an understatement.
At the 102nd meeting of the National Judicial Council (NJC) held today, 14 June 2023, I took the liberty of my membership of the Council to complain about the rather disgusting and despicable conduct of Senator Bulkachuwa, which was a direct attack on the integrity of the Judiciary. The NJC condemned the actions of the Senator in the strongest terms as an affront on the integrity and independence of the Judiciary. I made it clear to the Council that, while the NBA will at all times rise to the defence of the honour, integrity and independence of the judiciary, we shall not hesitate to take on anyone, either within or outside the legal profession, who takes steps or makes statements that are capable of undermining the independence of the judiciary and the impartiality judicial processes.
It is in this regard that I call on the Inspector General of Police (IGP) and the Chairman of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), to
immediately invite Senator Ahmad Muhammad Bulkachuwa for interrogation and proceed to prosecute him accordingly. I shall write a letter to both the IGP and the ICPC Chairman in this respect.
We reiterate our commitment to the maintenance and defence of the integrity and independence of the Judiciary in Nigeria, within the bounds of the law, irrespective of the personalities involved.
Yakubu Chonoko Maikyau, OON, SAN
PRESIDENT
