Lawyers’ corruption allegations against judiciary lack evidence

ONOZURE DANIA captures the reactions of the President of the Nigerian Bar Association to allegations of corruption made against the judiciary by members of the legal profession

On November 27, 2023, the President of the Nigerian Bar Association, Yakubu Maikyau (SAN), stated that the many unsavoury remarks of lawyers against the judiciary were clearly inciting the public against the third organ of government.

He disclosed this in Abuja at the opening of the 2023/2024 legal year of the Supreme Court and conferment of Senior Advocate of Nigeria rank on 58 lawyers.

The NBA president’s statement followed the confusion that greeted the emergence of a Certified True Copy of the Court of Appeal judgment on the Kano State governorship election,  which the state Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Haruna Isa-Dederi, argued showed that Governor Abba Yusuf’s victory at the poll was affirmed by the appeal court.

On that same Monday, an Abuja-based lawyer, Daniel Bwala, said that the 2023 elections birthed Nigeria’s worst court judgments in recent years.

Bwala, during an interview on Arise TV, stated, “In the 2023 elections, we have had the worst judgment of courts. We have not had so much of conflicting decisions by one tier of government, because if you look at the election tribunal this year, you will notice that there were inconsistencies in one or two tribunal cases at the trial level, and probably at the Supreme Court, one or two complaints, but at the Court of Appeal is where almost all of these conflicting judgments have so far been experienced.”

The lawyer hinted that several retired justices, in their judgments, had classified the decisions by lower courts that did not follow the judgment of the Supreme Court as “judicial rascality.”

But Maikyau, who lamented about the challenges of the entire justice system in several respects, implored the 58 new SANs and the other members of the bar to educate the public on the state of the law.

“By educating the public, we help shape the expectation of the public with regard to the justice that we all, as members of the legal profession, are called to serve either from the bench or bar to the people of Nigeria. And this responsibility or duty cannot be performed by any other person or profession; only the bench and the bar can perform this sacred duty.

“It is the sole responsibility of the members of the bench and bar, to dispense justice to the people, and if justice is, and yes, it is, at the core of the existence or survival of our nation Nigeria then, it necessarily follows that the survival of this nation rests and lies in our hands.

“There has never been a time in our history that the judiciary came under attack like this time, and my lords will agree with me that, more than 90 per cent of these attacks stem from election-related matters, which in so many ways have affected the other matters being handled by the courts,” the NBA President said.

Maikayu also stated that there was no ambiguity in the NBA position concerning the cacophony of unsalutary comments dominating much of the recent conversations about the judiciary over the last few months.

He condemned those comments, saying, “I must particularly mention that it is regrettable that an unacceptable number of these armchair critics have come from the legal profession.

“The gale of unfounded allegations based on the disjointed and jaundiced review of decided election petition matters by some of our colleagues cannot but be disconcerting.

“In all this, there is yet to be any specific evidence of impropriety. All that we have seen is a general condemnation of the entire judiciary.”

Maikayu also lamented the quietness of the leading lights of the bar, while quoting Christopher Williams, and Sir Adetokunbo Ademola.

He said, “I quote again, the first Nigerian to be called to the Nigerian bar, Christopher Williams, who noted that, ‘The legal practitioner lives for the direction of his people and the advancement of the cause of his country.’

“I also recall that Adetokunbo Ademola had asserted that, ‘The respect in which the bar in any country is held is the best indicator of the freedom in that country.’ These two profound statements are instructive and worthy of note and consideration.

“While the former speaks to all members of the legal profession, the latter is specifically addressed to the bar. We have a very critical role to play in society and that is not something to be toyed with or taken lightly.

“The leading lights of the bar have largely remained silent when it comes to the education of the public on matters of law as it affects Nigerians, and this has greatly encouraged unprofessionalism amongst lawyers.

“This silence has continued to thrive and has allowed all manner of information, and misinformation to percolate through the consciousness of Nigerians and have succeeded in moulding their psyche along the lines of twisted information resulting in the attacks on the judiciary.”

The NBA President added that the well-laid-down principles of law are twisted, tweaked, or taken out of context just to serve personal interests and not the cause of justice.

“Indeed, this is the point at which legal scholars and experts in the areas concerned are expected to speak up, through articles and journals to state the proper perspectives of the law, set the record straight, and provide guidance and direction to the public in line with our responsibility as legal practitioners to provide direction to the people.

“What is more pathetic is the internationalisation of these views. These colleagues have decided that the solution to the challenges that we face at home is to tell the world that our judiciary and justice system are incapable of delivering justice.

“They talk about corruption in the judiciary with so much authority, it defies belief that even as lawyers they see no need for any evidence to back up their claims,” he stated.

Maikayu stressed further that allowing such misinformation or deliberate distractions to pervade the minds of Nigerians would only lead to uncivilised reactions to the justice delivery system with the attendant consequence of the refusal to accept the product of the exercise, thereby resulting in chaos and anarchy.

He said, “Those who engage in election petition proceedings in Nigeria form part of the crème de la crème of the legal profession in Nigeria. When we hear or read these statements often made by our colleagues (many of the inner bar), we owe Nigerians the duty to put the records straight and be deliberate about disseminating the true position of the law, to keep the expectation or reaction of the public within the bounds of the law.”