The Rivers State Chapter of All Progressives Congress, APC, has noted with
shock the recent appointment of two well-known PDP sympathisers, foot
soldiers and close associates of Gov. Nyesom Wike as members of the 10-man
Judicial Ethics Committee of the National Judicial Council (NJC) with a
mandate to review the Code of Conduct for Judicial Officers in the
country.
The APC in a statement signed by its State Publicity Secretary,
Senibo Chris Finebone identified the two individuals as Retired Justice
Iche Ndu and former President of the Nigerian Bar Association, NBA, Bar.
Okey Wali SAN.
The statement reads: “The APC vehemently rejects the inclusion of these
two individuals in a critical committee such as the Judicial Ethics
Committee of the NJC charged with an all-important task of reviewing the
code of conduct for judicial officers. Indeed, their inclusion underscores
the unwillingness and unpreparedness of the NJC to buy into the
anti-corruption drive of the President Muhammadu Buhari administration.
The APC views this action by the NJC as the height of insensitivity and
brazen resistance to the efforts by the government to sanitize the
Nigerian judiciary.
“The Chairman of NJC and Chief Justice of Nigeria, CJN, Justice Mahmud
Mohammed and the rest of the Council members cannot feign ignorance of the
overt political leanings of Iche Ndu and Okey Wali as PDP and Gov Nyesom
Wike’s political facilitators whose activities and influence on judges are
presently under investigation. We make bold to state that this obvious
display of indiscretion by the Honourable Chief Justice and the NJC smacks
of inexplicable thoughtlessness, befuddles the mind and sears through good
conscience.
“For the record, retired Justice Iche Ndu and Okey Wali are unarguable
ardent supporters of the Rivers State governor who have been variously
named in petitions bothering on compromising of various judges and the
petitions are subject of ongoing investigations. Therefore it is
disturbing that the NJC would blatantly ignore the unfolding events around
the two individuals and perniciously appoint them into a very sensitive
job of reviewing code of conduct for judicial officers.
“Therefore, the APC calls on the NJC and its Chairman, Hon. Justice Mahmud
Mohammed to drop retired Justice Iche Ndu and Bar. Okey Wali SAN from the
NJC 10-man Judicial Ethics Committee without delay. The APC hereby serves
notice to the NJC to do the needful immediately or face a well-mobilised
and long-drawn protest by the APC which will include occupying selected
locations in Port Harcourt and Abuja.”