Crackdown on judges: presidency backs DSS says it follows the law

You're responsible for our travails, judges accuse Malami Lawyer files N50bn suit against Buhari, AGF, DSS, IGP A BUJA - As the furore over the raid on the homes of judges rages, the Presidency has endorsed the action taken by the Department of State Service, DSS, saying the agency complied fully with extant laws. This came as Minister of Justice and Attorney-General of the Federation, Mr. Abubakar Malami, yesterday, challenged two judges of the Federal High Court to proceed to court and prove any case they have against him, instead of resorting to blackmail and falsehood. The AGF's comments, however, drew the ire of senior lawyers in the country, even as a legal practitioner, Mr. Olukoya Ogungbeje slammed President Muhammadu Buhari with a N50 billion suit for violating the rights of judges, whose houses were raided by operatives of the DSS. The Presidency's verdict is contained in a detailed review made available to Vanguard last night. In the review, the Presidency also noted that the DSS acted in accordance with the extant laws of the land, adding that the agency had policing powers of its own. The legal review, a report now under active consideration in the Presidency, checked every aspect of law involved in the raids-sting operation-arrests, including a review of the new Administration of Criminal Justice procedures, issue of search warrants, the role and place of the National Judicial Council, among several others. In its conclusion, the review report affirmed that "the actions of the DSS in the arrest and search of the premises of judges and justices can be placed firmly within the ambit of the law, sentimental and emotional considerations notwithstanding." The presidential legal review added that it is "pertinent to note that Nigeria is not the first country to investigate and prosecute Judges that are suspected of commission of acts of crime. "The Federal Bureau of Investigation, FBI, in the United States of America (a body similar to DSS) has at various times, prominently in January 2013, May 2014, and November 2015 arrested a number of judges for bribery, corruption and other similar offences; subjected the judges to trial at the end of which the convicted judges were imprisoned. "Nearer home, neighbours like Ghana and Kenya had also cleansed their respective judiciaries through investigation and prosecution of judges suspected of commission of corruption." A Presidency source involved in the review added that while a particular federal judge had alleged that he signed at gunpoint, what really happened was that the judge was not arrested until his lawyer came to the scene on his request and affirmed that the search warrants were in order. Besides, the source added that, while some of the judges in their statements said the foreign currencies found on them were from their unspent estacodes, a claim said to be untenable, considering the sums of money involved, another judge was said to have explained the huge sums of money away as proceeds of his rice selling business. When and how can search and arrest warrants be executed? According to the legal review ordered by the Presidency last week, on the issue of search warrant, it was discovered that the DSS followed Section 148 ACJA, which states that: "A search warrant may be issued and executed at any time on any day, including a Sunday and public holiday." On how the search should be conducted, Section 149 of the ACJA provides that: "(1) Where any building or other thing or place liable to search is closed, a person residing in or being in charge of the building, thing or place shall, on demand of the police officer or other person executing the search warrant, allow him free and unhindered access to it and afford all reasonable facilities for its search. "Where access into the building, thing or place cannot be so obtained, the police officer or other person executing the search warrant may proceed in the manner prescribed by Sections 9, 10, 12 and 13 of this Act." The Presidential review added that "Sections 9, 10, 12 and 13 relate to the use of force in the search of a person arrested; inventory of items recovered in the search; entry of premises where a suspect to be arrested has entered into; and breaking open of any outer or inner door or window of any house or place whether that of the suspect to be arrested or any other person or otherwise effect entry into such house or place. "These provisions are similar to the provisions of Sections 7 and 112 of the Criminal Procedure Law and followed by the DSS," the review noted. On the execution of an arrest warrant, Section 43 (1) ACJA provides that "a warrant of arrest may be executed on any day, including a public holiday." According to the review, "the bone of contention in the public discourse hinges on whether the DSS has the power to undertake the operations it undertook in relation to the arrested judges/justices. The Presidential legal review, then determined that, indeed, the DSS has sufficient police powers. The review stated further: "In the discharge of their responsibilities as they relate to searches and arrests, staff of DSS are conferred with the powers of Superior Police Officers. Reacting to the development, a retired Supreme Court Justice, Samson Uwaifo, SAN, said at the weekend: "A corrupt judge is more harmful to the society than a man who runs amok with a dagger in a crowded street." He said: "If a judge is corrupt, he is no longer a judge, he is a thief and, therefore, should be treated as such, according to the law and sent to jail." He added that focus should be placed on how to eradicate corruption from the judiciary. "The substantive issue is corruption. Is it true that these people are actually corrupt and that huge sums of money were found in their place? If that is so, the question of the procedure that was taken would be a secondary thing," he said, adding that if wrong, the DSS can be punished for what it did, while focus is kept on the outcome of the DSS action. "The retired Supreme Court justice also lampooned the National Judicial Commission for recommending that corrupt judges be retired rather than outright dismissal." Go to court, AGF challenges judges However, the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation, Mr. Abubakar Malami, yesterday, challenged two judges of the Federal High Court to proceed to court and prove any case they have against him, instead of resorting to blackmail and falsehood. Malami is being accused by Justices Ademola Adeniyi and Namdi Dimgba of being the brain behind penultimate week's nocturnal raid on their homes by operatives of the DSS, in a bid to revenge unfavourable judgments they entered against him and the Federal Government. The judges are seeking leave of the Chief Justice of Nigeria to raise legal issues against the DSS and the AGF over the raids on their home and infringement on their fundamental rights. But Malami, who spoke to Vanguard, last night, through his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Comrade Salihu Isah, denied all the claims made against him by the two learned men and asked them to proceed to court to prove their case against him. The minister wondered why the suspected judges did not bring up the cases against him when he appeared before the Senate for confirmation but threw them up only after being confronted with corruption allegations by the DSS. "The Minister of Justice does not do a personal job to warrant taking vengeance on anyone. The issue is clear and unambiguous. If you have any case against him, proceed to court to prove it or stop whipping up sentiments to score cheap points. "From all indications, what they are trying desperately to do after the DSS raids is an afterthought, which cannot avail them of any advantage in law, as the AGF has nothing personal against any of them or any other Nigerian in the discharge of his duties," Salihu said. The two judges claimed in separate letters sent to the CJN that their travails in the hands of Malami stemmed from recent verdicts they entered against the Federal Government, which the minister was uncomfortable with. While Justice Ademola ordered release of the detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, Nnamdi Kanu, and also granted bail to the detained former National Security Adviser to ex-President Goodluck Jonathan, Col. Sambo Dasuki, retd, on self recognition, Justice Dimgba on the other hand, granted bail to a former member of the arms probe panel set up by the Federal Government, Air Commodore Umar Mohammed (retd). The DSS ignored the orders and subsequently took the accused persons before Justice John Tsoho of the same court, who though refused Kanu bail, okayed same bail terms earlier given to Mohammed by Dimgba. Lawyer files N50bn suit against Buhari, AGF, DSS, IGP Meanwhile, a legal practitioner, Mr. Olukoya Ogungbeje, has dragged Buhari to court, accusing him of violating rights of judges whose houses were raided by operatives of the DSS. In a N50billion suit he entered before the Federal High Court in Abuja, the Lagos-based lawyer, cited the DSS and its Director-General, Mr. Lawal Daura, as defendants. Other defendants in the suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/809/16, were the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, SAN; the Inspector-General of Police, Ibrahim Idris, and the National Judicial Council, NJC. The plaintiff contended that the arrest and detention of the judges without recourse to the NJC, was not only unconstitutional, but also aimed at ridiculing the judiciary arm of government. According to him, the action of the DSS was in gross violation of rights of the judges as enshrined in Sections 33, 34, 35, 36, and 41 of the 1999 Constitution, as amended. Consequently, Ogungbeje, who instituted the action on behalf of five out of the seven judges whose homes were "invaded" between October 8 and 9, sought 10 separate reliefs from the court, including award of N50 billion as general and exemplary damages against the defendants, as well as another N2 million as cost of the suit. Besides, the plaintiff prayed the court for an order compelling the DSS to return to the judges, money that were seized from their homes. He urged the court to make an order of perpetual injunction restraining the defendants from arresting, inviting, intimidating, or harassing any of the judges pertaining to the case. In a 39-paragraph affidavit he deposed in support of the suit, the plaintiff identified as follows::"The 1st (President Buhari), 2nd (DG of DSS), 3rd (DSS), 4th (AGF), and 5th (Inspector-General of Police) as respondents. It pointed out that there is no petition by the affected to the 6th respondent (NJC). "That the 6th respondent is the only body empowered by the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to discipline judges and judicial officers in Nigeria. "That the judiciary is an independent arm of government in Nigeria and separate from the executive and the legislature. "That this illegal and unconstitutional action by the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th respondents have been roundly condemned by the Nigerian Bar Association. "That the 2nd (DG of DSS), 3rd (DSS), and 5th (IGP) respondents carried out their action which brazenly infringed upon the rights of the affected five judges without lawful excuse or recourse to the 6th respondent." Meanwhile, the case-file is yet to be assigned to any Judge for hearing. Malami's grudge against me, by Justice Ademola Meanwhile, Justice Ademola has said that AGF Malami, instigated his arrest to take back his pound of flesh, owing to a clash they had in the past when the AGF was practising as a lawyer in Kano. Ademola, who then served as a Judge of the Federal High Court, Kano Division, said he had reported Malami to the NJC for engaging in professional misconduct. He said it took the intervention of Kano branch of the Nigerian Bar Association, NBA, to save the AGF from being debarred, alleging that Malami got freed using a fake apology letter. "What is more intriguing in this whole episode, is that I see it as a vendetta/revenge from the Hon. Attorney General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami. While I was in Kano between 2004 and 2007 as a Federal High Court judge, he was involved in a professional misconduct necessitating his arrest and detention by my order. "However, with the intervention of the NBA, Kano branch, the allegation of misconduct was later withdrawn by me. "Consequently, the NJC referred Abubakar Malami (SAN) to the Nigerian Bar Association's Disciplinary Committee for disciplinary action." On the raid, Ademola denied that huge amount of money was found in his residence, saying he could, however, not determine how much was actually recovered, since the money was allegedly recovered from his house in his absence. He said the DSS had aside accusing him of granting "unconstitutional bail" to Kanu and Dasuki, also told him 24 hours after his arrest, that allegations for which he was being investigated included a petition by Mr. Jekins Duvie dated April 4, still pending before the NJC. "After stating the grounds for the invasion as stated above, they requested explanation of the money found in my apartment, as well as two licensed firearms also found in my apartment. "All the allegations that border on judicial decisions were supported with Certified True Copy of Proceedings showing that those applications were not opposed by the counsel representing the Department of State Services of the Federal Government of Nigeria", the Judge added. Giving a peep into what transpired that night, Ademola said he mistook the the DSS operatives for armed robbers, "especially because this was at an ungodly hour of the night." He said the operatives numbering about 45, with all of them masked, stormed his official residence at House 30, Ogbemudia Crescent, Apo Legislative Quarters, Abuja, on or about 12 am of the said day, Friday. Ademola said he was awaken by the operatives' loud sound of banging, breaking and hitting. "They asked me to open the door and I responded, asking them, 'who are you?' They answered 'We are officers of the Department of State Services and we are here with a search warrant to search your house.' "I told them to allow me to call my counsel. At this point, they had already began kicking at my door and after about three kicks, I got up and opened my bedroom door and let them in. "To my surprise, I saw about 45 masked officers of the DSS, all heavily armed pointing their guns at me. They flashed a document purported to be a search warrant and ordered me to sign on a document claiming that they had already conducted a search downstairs. "They also added that I was totally under their custody as I have always made an order against them (the DSS). "I complied and upon signing the document, they told me that I was under arrest and ordered me with guns still pointed at me to move outside. As I was going, they told me they were taking me to their office without showing any warrant of arrest," the letter read. "I obeyed them and at about six o'clock in the morning, I was whisked away from my residence to the DSS office. "From the time of my arrival at the DSS office, at about 6:45am on October 8, I was not told what my crime was for over 24 hours till the evening of October 9. "A DSS official finally informed me that the search and my arrest were based on these three allegations: The petition of Hon. Jenkins Duvie dated April 4, 2016 to the National Judicial Council and granting bail to Col. Sambo Dasuki and the unconditional release of Nnamdi Kanu."  

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