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The Presidential
Candidate of the Social Democratic Mega Party (SDMP), Pat Utomi said
the Chief Justice of the Federation, Aloysius Katsina-Alu, should
resign his appointment and leave the position following the ugly
exchanges between him and Ayo Salami, the President of the Court of
Appeal.

Mr Utomi in a
statement issued on Thursday described the development as one that “has
greatly eroded the public confidence in the ability of the institution
to dispense unbiased justice.” According to him, “going by the fact
that a full-scale inquiry would be needed to fully ascertain the
veracity of all claims and counter-claims, we may not be in a position
to apportion guilt to any party.

“Still, it is a
fact that certain institutions, by the manner of functions they carry
out in the society, should remain unassailable by controversy and
engender the greatest confidence in the hearts of all citizens.

The Judiciary,
headed as it were by the office of the Chief Judge of the Federation
being a most important part of such institutions, it is a most
honourable thing for the Chief Judge of Nigeria to resign his
appointment at this time.” He said.

The statement
pointed out that “if the re-assigning of position to a higher one by
the Chief Justice could arouse such mistrust of intent from not only
the beneficiary of the position, but from other important members of
the Judiciary, it goes to point out the abysmal loss of confidence by
the members of the Judiciary in the Chief Judge.” Mr Salami whose
elevation to the Supreme Court was yesterday quashed by the National
Judicial Council had since gone to court to challenge the unsolicited
elevation, alleging through his counsel, Lateef Fagbemi, that the Chief
Justice of Nigeria (CJN) had expressly requested from him as the PCA,
the dissolution of the panel trying the Sokoto gubernatorial election
petition to the intent of compromising the verdict.

The National
Judicial Council had through a statement reversed the “elevation”
“because of the controversies it generated.” A Civil group, Access to
Justice has also called for an immediate investigation of the
allegations levelled against the Chief Justice of the federation.
According to Joseph Otteh, Executive Director of the group, “if the
allegations that the Chief Justice of Nigeria had sought to interfere
with proceedings before a Court by asking for the disbandment of a duly
constituted tribunal, or procuring the Court of Appeal President to
direct the outcome of the tribunal’s verdict is correct, it would be a
grave, grossly unethical and treacherous violation of the Code of
Conduct for Judicial Officers of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

“It would undermine
every precept about justice, fairness, due process, rule of law, the
independence of the judiciary, and transparency that the Judiciary
stands for. It would be perfidious, and a serious and profane fraud on
the administration of justice in Nigeria and on the eminent Office of
the Chief Justice who is the face of the Judiciary.” He said.

Protests

Meanwhile, Ayo
Arise (PDP Ekiti State) who represents Ekiti North Senatorial district
in the Senate also in an interview with Journalists said, “I got a
petition from the registered voters in Idosi, a signed petition by over
1000 in that local government complaining about disenfranchisement of
their persons and the fact that their votes did not count in the
governance of the people of Ekiti State simply by the action of
cancelling of all the results of all the voters in Idosi local
government and they prayed after alluding to so many irregularities
that has taken place in the court room of Justice Isa Salami.” He
alleged that the judgment delivered in Justice Salami’s court is a
tinted judgment “as far as they are concern and part of the prayers is
for this hallow chamber to begin impeachment move against justice
Salami, because the compulsion is that the judiciary under his watch
particularly the Appeal Court has now been brought to public ridicule.”