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SHOCKER: Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan Dragged To Court
http://www.africaeagle.com/2014/08/shocker-president-goodluck-jonathan.html
An Abuja-based lawyer, Chidinma Hilary Udebuani, has dragged President Goodluck Jonathan, the Chief Judge of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Ibrahim Bukar and three others before the Federal High Court, Abuja.
They were over allegations of discriminatory and the skewed nature of appointments of judicial officers and judges in FCT, in flagrant disregard of the mode of appointment.
The plaintiff, in the suit, is seeking an order to stop the appointment of five new judges for the FCT.
Also cited as defendants in the suit are the chairman, FCT Judicial Service Commission, the FCT Judicial Committee, the National Judicial Council (NJC) and its chairman.
In a letter attached to the suit and addressed to President Jonathan, the plaintiff had, through her counsel, Dim-Udebuani Marcel, accused the chief judge of the FCT, Justice Bukar, of being in breach of the law, setting up the FCT Judiciary, which made a provision for 37 judges, excluding the Chief Judge for the FCT Judiciary with the result that there shall be a judge from each state of the federation and the FCT.
According to Dim-Udebuani, “the Chief Judge of the FCT has been in breach of the said legislation, which was meant to run with the spirit of the federal character, as enshrined in the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
In the suit before the Federal High Court, Udebuani seeks an order, stopping the ongoing appointment process of judicial officers to fill up the vacancies in the FCT High Court, an order setting aside the provisional of final shortlisted candidates.
He also wants “an order compelling the defendants to correct the anomalies by shortlisting candidates from the states that have none or one rather than appointing from states that already has two or more.
“An order of the court directing the Chief Registrar of the High Court of the FCT to post on the website of the court the correct and authentic profile of all the judges in the FCT.
“An order stopping the president (first defendant) from acting on any recommendation of the NJC as regards to appointment of judges in the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, pending the rectification of the anomalies.”
Udebuani insisted that the nomination or appointment of new judicial officers to fill in the vacancies must be made in those states that have none and that it would amount to a mockery of the nation’s constitution as it regards to the federal character principle to appoint from those states that already have judges because the elevated judges were either elevated or retired from those states.
However, no date has been fixed for the hearing of the suit.
Source: Daily Times
The plaintiff, in the suit, is seeking an order to stop the appointment of five new judges for the FCT.
Also cited as defendants in the suit are the chairman, FCT Judicial Service Commission, the FCT Judicial Committee, the National Judicial Council (NJC) and its chairman.
In a letter attached to the suit and addressed to President Jonathan, the plaintiff had, through her counsel, Dim-Udebuani Marcel, accused the chief judge of the FCT, Justice Bukar, of being in breach of the law, setting up the FCT Judiciary, which made a provision for 37 judges, excluding the Chief Judge for the FCT Judiciary with the result that there shall be a judge from each state of the federation and the FCT.
According to Dim-Udebuani, “the Chief Judge of the FCT has been in breach of the said legislation, which was meant to run with the spirit of the federal character, as enshrined in the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
In the suit before the Federal High Court, Udebuani seeks an order, stopping the ongoing appointment process of judicial officers to fill up the vacancies in the FCT High Court, an order setting aside the provisional of final shortlisted candidates.
He also wants “an order compelling the defendants to correct the anomalies by shortlisting candidates from the states that have none or one rather than appointing from states that already has two or more.
“An order of the court directing the Chief Registrar of the High Court of the FCT to post on the website of the court the correct and authentic profile of all the judges in the FCT.
“An order stopping the president (first defendant) from acting on any recommendation of the NJC as regards to appointment of judges in the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, pending the rectification of the anomalies.”
Udebuani insisted that the nomination or appointment of new judicial officers to fill in the vacancies must be made in those states that have none and that it would amount to a mockery of the nation’s constitution as it regards to the federal character principle to appoint from those states that already have judges because the elevated judges were either elevated or retired from those states.
However, no date has been fixed for the hearing of the suit.
Source: Daily Times
