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Can of Worms As Retiring Justice Dattijo Exposes CJN, Supreme Court’s Ineptitude, Bias (Full Speech)

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By Eric Elezuo

The retirement ceremony of Hon. Justice Musa Dattijo Muhammad, who bowed out of the Supreme Court on Friday having attained the statutory retirement age of 70, with not less than 47 years in the judiciary, 10 of which was as a Supreme Court justice, opened up a can of stinking worms, exposing the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Kayode Ariwoola and the Supreme Court as a whole as an institution of bias and ineptitude.

In his valedictory speech, the justice opened a new conversation on the enormous powers the office of the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN) wields, and how the present CJN has deliberately starved some regions, especially the South East of representation in the apex court among other revelations.

With no holds barred, His Lordship systematically dissected the politics of ethnicity in the apex court, saying that he is leaving the Supreme Court worse than he met it.

The CJN, who spoke earlier, set the stage for Justice Dattijo’s outburst, when he described him as one who says it as it is.

“His Lordship is one judicial officer that could be blunt, even to a fault; and is never known to be afraid to say things the way they are; and also never shies away from calling a spade by its name, irrespective of whose ox is gored,” the CJN stated.

Some of the special attendees at the ceremony were former Head of State, Gen. Abdulsalami Abubakar (Rtd.) and his wife Hon Justice Fati Lami Abubakar (Rtd.) a former Chief Judge of Niger state, Hon. Justice Sidi Bage, JSC (Rtd.), Emir of Lafia and one time Justice of the apex court, Attorney General of the Federation, Prince Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) Mr. Y.C. Maikyau ( SAN), Chief J.K Gadzama ((SAN), who represented the Body of Senior Advocates (BOSAN), a host of other dignitaries.

An abridged and full text presentation of the speech is espoused below:

The Powers of the Chief Justice of Nigeria and Depleting Number of Justices at the Supreme Court

“As presently structured the CJN is Chairman of the NJC which oversees both the appointment and discipline of judges, he is equally Chair of the Federal Judicial Service Commission (FJSC) which recommends those selected for appointment to the NJC, the National Judicial Institute (NJI) and the Legal Practitioners Privileges Committee (LPPC) which appoints Senior Advocates of Nigeria. In my considered opinion the oversight functions of these bodies should not rest on an individual alone. A person with absolute power, it is said, corrupts easily and absolutely.

“As Chair of NJC, FJSC, NJI, and LPPC, appointments as council, board and committee members are at his pleasure. He neither confers with fellow justices nor seeks their counsel or input on any matter related to these bodies. He has both the final and the only say. The CJN has the power to appoint 80 percent of members of the council and 60 percent of members of FJSC. The same applies to NJC and LPPC. The power of being appointed a judge of any court rests squarely on him. Such enormous powers can be abused. Such enormous powers are effortlessly abused. This needs to change. Continued denial of the existence of this threatening anomaly weakens effective judicial oversight in the country.

“By the provision of Paragraph 20 of Part One of the Third Schedule to the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, as amended, the NJC shall comprise the following Members: the Chief Justice of Nigeria, who shall be the Chairman; the next most senior Justice of the Supreme Court who shall be the Deputy Chairman. Regrettably, the next most senior Justice of the Supreme Court like Deputy Governors of States, shorn of any official function except at the pleasure of the Governor, is neither consulted on anything nor does he have any official function. His job as No. 2 is purely as the CJN pleases. It is incumbent that the system provides for more inclusion and consultation among stakeholders.

“The conversation about the diminishing number of justices of Nigeria’s Supreme Court has become a refrain. As I bow out today, the number is further reduced to 10 against the Constitutional requirement of 21 justices. That this avoidable depletion has affected the court and will further affect the court and Nigerians is stating the obvious.

“We are in an election season where the Election Tribunals and appellate courts are inundated with all manner of petitions and appeals. The Supreme Court is the final court in the Presidential, Governorship, and National Assembly election appeals. Yet, there are only 10 justices left to determine these matters. Constitutionally, each of these appeals requires a panel of seven justices to sit on them. When a panel of seven justices is constituted to sit on a particular appeal, only three justices are left out. Even when regular appeals are being heard in the Supreme Court, a panel of five justices is required to sit.

“We must not forget that the Supreme Court, being the highest court in the land receives all manner of appeals from the court below. Presently, there is neither limit nor distinction to the manner of appeals that come to the apex court. Again, beside election matters which are seasonal, the Supreme Court’s docket is overflowing with civil and criminal appeals, some of which took many years to arrive. Most of these are still pending. Several have not even been assigned hearing dates. The court also exercises original jurisdiction.

“As the justices who hear these matters are grossly overstretched, unable to meet the demands of their onerous assignment, the appellants who came to us seeking justice are left in limbo; waiting endlessly for justice to be served. These as I said before, are avoidable.

“When I exit today, the North Central region that I represent will cease to have any representation until such a time new appointments are made. My Lord Hon. Justice Ejembi Eko who also represented the zone retired on the 23rd of May, 2022. It has been a year and five months now. There has not been any replacement. With the passing of My Lord, Hon. Justice C.C. Nweze on 30th July 2023 the South East no longer has any presence at the Supreme Court. My Lord, Hon. Justice Sylvester Nwali Ngwuta died on 7th March 2021. There has not been any appointment in his stead for the South East.

“To ensure justice and transparency in the event of presidential appeals from the lower court, all geo-political zones are required to participate in the hearing. It is therefore dangerous for democracy and equity for two entire regions to be left out in the decisions that will affect the generality of Nigerians. This does not demonstrate federal character as required by our laws.

“Although it can be posited that no one expected the sudden passing of Justice Nweze, JSC, yet, it has been two years and seven months since the previous Justice from the South East died and no appointment was made. Ditto for the replacement of Justice Eko of North Central who exited nearly two years ago. Hon. Justice Sidi Bage, JSC, how His Royal Highness the Emir of Lafia, from the North Central, had earlier voluntarily retired. He is yet to be replaced.

“Also, it was clear ab-initio that I would be leaving the court this day on attaining the statutory age of 70. It is then not in doubt that there has been sufficient time for suitable replacements to have been appointed. This did not occur.

“When on the 6th of November 2020 the Supreme Court for the first time in its history got a full complement of 21 justices with the swearing-in of eight justices, little did anyone know that we were only a few steps to unimaginable retrogression. As it stands, only four geo-political regions —The South-West, South-South, North-West, and North-East are represented in the Supreme Court. While the South-South and the North-East have two serving justices, the North-West and the South-West are fully represented with three each. Appropriate steps could have been taken since to fill outstanding vacancies in the apex court.

“Why have these steps not been timeously taken? It is evident that the decision not to fill the vacancies in the court is deliberate. It is all about the absolute powers vested in the office of the Chief Justice of Nigeria and the responsible exercise of same.”

SEE THE FULL TEXT BELOW:

SPEECH-BY-HON.-JUSTICE-M.-DATTIJO

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Peddle Drugs and Die: NAFDAC Goes for the Jugular

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By Eric Elezuo

Drug peddlers and their sponsors are in for a harder time if recommendations and proposal of death penalty, by the Director General of the National Agency for Food and Drugs Administration and Control (NAFDAC), Mrs Mojisola Adeyeye, sails through.

The formation of NAFDAC was inspired by a 1988 World Health Assembly resolution requesting countries’ help in combating the global health threat posed by counterfeit pharmaceuticals

Speaking bitterly at a live television show on the hard-heartedness of peddlers, whose actions, direct and indirect, have caused the deaths of not a few Nigerian children, and in some cases, adults.

According to the Director-General, only stiff penalties will deter peddlers, especially when it leads to the death of children.

She noted that “Somebody bought children’s medicine for N13,000 or something like that, another person was selling about N3,000 in the same mall,” the NAFDAC chief said on Friday’s edition of Channels Television’s The Morning Brief. 

“That raised an alarm. Guess what? There was nothing inside that medicine when we tested it in our Kaduna lab. So, I want the death penalty.

“Because you don’t need to put a gun on the head of a child before you kill that child. Just give that child bad medicine,” Adeyeye said.

The NAFDAC DG is also seeking the cooperation of the judiciary and the National Assembly to make such a move a reality. According to her, the agency is open to partnering with lawmakers and other stakeholders on the matter.

“You cannot fight substandard, falsified medicine in isolation. The agency can do as much as it can but if there is no deterrent, there’s going to be a problem,” she said.

“Somebody brought in 225mg of Tramadol that can kill anybody, fry the brain and you give a judgment of five years in prison or N250,000. Who doesn’t know that that person will go to the ATM and get N250,000?

“That is part of our problem. There are no strict measures to deter [people] from repeating the same thing. We can do as much as we can but if our law is not strong enough, or the judiciary is not strong enough to stand up, we’re going to have a problem.

“So, our judiciary system must be strong enough. But we are working with the National Assembly to make our penalties very stiff.  But if you kill a child by bad medicine, you deserve to die,” she said.

While NAFDAC has a lot on its plate in stemming drug peddling, Adeyeye decried the shortage of manpower in the agency.

She believes with about 2,000 staff members nationwide and limited funding, NAFDAC is constrained in carrying out its activities.

“So, when it comes to staffing, you’re right on the point. We are short-staffed and I am hoping things will be better,” the NAFDAC DG said.

It would be recalled that in times past, and in recent times, the deaths of children from medicine intake has been rift, prompting a form of emergency in the medical sector to checkmate the activities of the saboteurs, who are bent on reaping gains at the expense of life and wellbeing.

Mrs Adeyeye has promptly toed the lines of former NAFDAC DG, the late Dora Akinyuli, who declared an all out against drug peddlers and couriers.

The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) is a federal agency under the Federal Ministry of Health that is responsible for regulating and controlling the manufacture, importation, exportation, advertisement, distribution, sale, and use of food, drugs, cosmetics, medical devices, chemicals, and packaged water established in 1993 under the health and safety law.

 

The establishment of NAFDAC was to counter the production and sales of adulterated and counterfeit drugs, which has become a menace in Nigeria, and to Nigerians. It would be recalled also that in one incident in 1989, over 150 children died as a result of paracetamol syrup containing diethylene glycol, among a list of other horrifying incidents.

At a certain stage, fake drugs issue was so severe that neighbouring countries such as Ghana and Sierra Leone officially banned the sale of drugs, foods, and beverage products made in Nigeria.

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El-Rufai Lacks Capacity to Win Even Senate Seat – Presidency

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Daniel Bwala, Special Adviser to the President on Policy Communication, has stated that the former Governor of Kaduna State, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai, the lacks the influence to “unsettle” President Bola Tinubu.

Bwala made the remarks during an interview with TVC News on Thursday, stating that former Kaduna State governor does not have the capacity to win even a senate seat.

He emphasized that President Tinubu is not troubled by El-Rufai’s ongoing criticisms of his administration.

Bwala also noted that el-Rufai only gains political prominence when aligning with a strong, revolutionary leader, adding: “Let me tell you something about my elder brother, el-Rufai, and whether we should be concerned.

“There’s a dynamic around him. El-Rufai needs a solid revolutionary figure to thrive. On his own, El-Rufa’i might not even secure a Senate seat.”

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Reps Propose Creation of 31 More States

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The House of Representatives Committee on the review of the 1999 Constitution has proposed the creation of 31 additional states in the country.

Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Benjamin Kalu, who presided over plenary on Thursday read a letter from the committee containing the proposed states.

If approved, this will increase the number of states in Nigeria to 67.

The letter read: “This is to inform members that the House of Representatives Committee on the Review of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as altered), has received legislative proposals for the creation of states and local governments in the following order:

NORTH CENTRAL

1. BENUE ALA STATE from the present Benue State.
2. OKUN STATE from the present Kogi State
3. OKURA STATE from the present Kogi State
4. CONFLUENCE STATE from the present Kogi State
5. APA-AGBA STATE from Benue South Senatorial District
6. APA STATE from the present Benue State.
7. A 37th state, namely FEDERAL CAPITAL TERRITORY, ABUJA

NORTH EAST

8. AMANA STATE from the present Adamawa State.
9. KATAGUM STATE from the present Bauchi State.
10. SAVANNAH STATE from the present Borno State.
11. MURI STATE from the present Taraba State.

NORTH WEST

12. NEW KADUNA STATE and GURARA STATE from the present Kaduna State.
13. TIGA STATE from the present Kano State.
14. KAINJI STATE from the present Kebbi State.
15. GHARI STATE from the present Kano State

SOUTH EAST

16. ETITI STATE as the sixth (6th) state in the South East geopolitical zone.
17. ADADA STATE from the present Enugu State of Nigeria.
18. URASHI STATE as the sixth (6th) state in the South East geopolitical zone.
19. ORLU STATE from the South Eastern Region of Nigeria.
20. ABA STATE from the South Eastern Region of Nigeria.

SOUTH SOUTH

21. OGOJA STATE from the present Cross River State.
22. WARRI STATE from the present Delta State.
23. BORI STATE from the present Rivers State
24. OBOLO STATE from the present Rivers and Akwa Ibom states.

SOUTH WEST

25. TORU-EBE STATE from the present Delta, Edo, and Ondo States.
26. IBADAN STATE from the present Oyo State.
27. LAGOON STATE from the present Lagos State.
28. IJEBU STATE from the present Ogun State.
29. LAGOON STATE from the present Lagos State and Ogun State
30. IBADAN STATE from the present Oyo State.
31. OKE-OGUN and IFE-IJESHA STATES from the Present-day Ogun, Oyo, and Osun states.

The request for states’ creation can only materialise if at least “the third majority of members of the Senate and the House of Representatives (National Assembly) and the House of Assembly in respect of the area, and the Local Government Council in respect of the area is received by the National Assembly.”

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