STILL ON THE MATTER OF THE STUNNING ARREST OF ROGUISH JUDGES

The Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) is as corrupt and incompetent as any other section of the Nigerian society that any expectation that it would do the right thing, over the arrest of suspected corrupt judges, was a misplaced expectation. 

In presenting the annual report of the Nigerian Law School to the NBA a couple of months ago, the school's Director-General, Olanrewaju Onedako, disclosed that lots of lawyers had over the years been caught writing bar exams for schools. Shockingly, he made no mention of having involved law enforcement in the matter; he did not mention the number of lawyers caught or how long such a scandalous corruption had gone on; and worse off all, he merely asked the NBA to discipline the lawyers.

It cannot be believed that such a criminal act could be committed by officers of the court in Nigeria and the most that a person as highly placed in the profession as the DG of the Nigerian Law School did was merely ask the NBA to sanction such court officers.

It is a fact that at least 2% of those called to the Nigerian Bar in the last 25 years did not see the inside of any law school (Mr Ayo Ojutalayo may know one or two things about this). It is also a fact that the NBA does not enforce its Code of Conduct for Professional Practice (am not even sure that it has any spelled out) and that about 95% of the lawyers in Nigeria do not uphold such a code, assuming that one exists. It, therefore, did not come as a shock to me that the NBA would oppose the arresting of suspected corrupt judges and justices by law enforcement.

The professionals within the Nigerian judicial system have been corrupt and incompetent for a long time. The corruption and incompetence of lawyers and judges have not been restricted to using money to inducing judgment but they also have risen to distorting the law to obtaining judgments outside of legal bounds. The escapism of holding corrupt and incompetent lawyers accountable in Nigeria, through running to the NJC, has long defied any sense.

One of NBA's major functions should be disciplining of erring lawyers and judges over non compliance with professional code of ethics; NJC should be about removal of judges and justices for professional failures, up to corruption. Neither body's actions should insulate law enforcement from prosecuting lawyers and judges found afoul of the law. But in order to perpetuate the corruption within the judiciary, those who should fight corruption but whose attitude towards it has been lukewarm (because they benefit from corrupt judges), have indulged in practical abdication of prosecution through handing over erring legal personnel to NJC. 

The Muhammadu Buhari that most of us loved a long time ago was the one who would grab the bull by the horns, as he has done with the arrests of these suspected corrupt judges. In 1985 when he was HoS, he cleansed the judiciary, that had been corrupt and politically partisan during the Second Republic, in similar fashion, jailing convicted corrupt judges and justices.

It is not surprising that he has risen to the occasion once again but the only concern is whether he will carry out the cleansing of the judiciary across board and without any biases. In other words, will APC sympathetic and or Northern Muslim Men corrupt members of the judiciary also be brought to justice?

Mr. president put this question mark on his character in the manner he began and has run his presidency. This type of question will continue to linger and will even disparage his legacy unless he erases it immediately through governing as the leader of all Nigerians, not as he currently governs. 

Let the cleansing out of corrupt lawyers/judges/justices continue, even if it is extended into the NBA and NJC. If these two bodies are corrupt, no amount of arresting judges will erase corruption in the judiciary without first cleansing them.