THE on-going process of appointment of Justices to the Court of Appeal has been hijacked by politicians, The Nation reports.

Sources in legal and judicial circles privy to the process, described the list as being dominated by candidates nominated or sponsored by politicians, with scant regard for competence, excellence or hard-work.

The exercise, which has been shrouded in secrecy from the beginning, is believed to be marred by lack of transparency and merit.

It was gathered that the list of nominated candidates, now awaiting National Judicial Council (NJC) scrutiny, is sealed in government confidential secret files.

Information available to The Nation suggests that when the list of names of those nominated is eventually made public, it will be such that will stun the legal community.

A controversial judge of the Federal High Court, believed to be pro-government, is said to have made the list.

A female judge from the Northwest, believed to be highly connected but of doubtful competence and who was recently appointed to the high court, is also said to have made the list.

Others in the list include those whose appointments are believed to be reward for being pro-government.

It was gathered that the exercise, which started smoothly, but secretly, at the Court of Appeal in June this year, passed through two crucial stages at the court, with two different committees of senior Justices of the court scrutinising the records and documents of candidates.

The process experienced a hitch at the Federal Judicial Service Commission (FJSC) when the list of candidates short-listed from the Court of Appeal was rejected and replaced with those submitted by politicians.

Application of the principle of quota system, in the name of Federal Character, but at the expense of competence and merit, was used to substitute the appellate court list.

Justice sector stakeholders are concerned that the list may be challenged by persons or organisations clamouring for transparency and competition in the appointment of judicial officers.

There has been an avalanche of appointments of Judges and Justices in recent times, with some of those appointments becoming so controversial that they ended in litigation.

One such exercise was the one initiated by the out-going Chief Judge of the Federal Capital Territory High Court, Justice Ishaq Bello. The exercise led to the recommendation of 33 judges by the NJC to the President out of which a whooping number of twenty-two were alleged to be unqualified. The Justice Reform Project (JRP), a group comprising senior lawyers, challenged the appointments in court.

The manipulation of judicial appointments by politicians also played out recently, when a number of Justices appointed to the Supreme Court from the Southern part of the country had to wait for about one year, allegedly to secure the seniority of a particular favoured candidate from the North.

According to a judicial source, “The effectiveness of any judiciary depends upon its perceived legitimacy, especially, in the eyes of the public. This perception requires not only that the judges uphold the highest standards of integrity and judicial independence.

“A competent judiciary is one whose members are appointed following a rigorous and transparent process of assessment of both the candidates’ legal qualifications as well as integrity.”

The source adds: “It is crucial that in appointment of Justices at the levels of the Court of Appeal and Supreme Court, only the best candidates are appointed. Judicial positions should not be politicised. This means, politicians should not interfere with appointment of judges. ”It is worrisome that the same politicians who go preaching merit in the appointment of Judges in the judiciary will do a full turn around and jeopardize a rigorous and meritorious process of appointment of Judges.”

Not too long ago, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, a professor of law and senior advocate, called for the reform of the appointment process for judges, insisting that it ought to be merit-based.

According to him, “We must take a second look at the appointment of judges. The merit-based system is necessary. We need to have mandatory test for them. We need to look at how our judges are selected. It is not enough to rise through the ranks in the judiciary with judges going to the Supreme Court from the appeal court. We must be able to bring in practicing lawyers and from the academic to become judges.”

Thenigerialawyer

The Inspector General of Police, Mr. Mohammed Adamu has allegedly detained twenty-four job applicants in a police cell at the force Criminal Investigation Department in Abuja, a human rights activist Mr. Mahdi Shehu has revealed.

According to Mr. Shehu, the lives of the detainee are in clear and imminent danger as they are being held under squalid conditions without access to family members for over six months.

In a social media video of 30 minutes, Mr. Shehu who says he is a non-commercial whistleblower said his conscience would not allow him to rest until he exposed the grave injustice that was being done to the young jobseekers by authorities of the Nigeria Police Force.

Narrating the ugly incident, the rights activist said, “A very sad story of twenty-four young men, all of them below the age of twenty-seven who have been under incarceration and detention for the last six months at the Force CID detention centre at Area 10 in Abuja.”

Mr. Shehu revealed that he happened on the incident when he was being unjustly incarcerated by the Nigeria Police chief who was acting on the orders of the Katsina State governor, Mr. Aminu Masari.

“I came across them when I was wickedly and unlawfully and deliberately arrested and detained against all existing laws in Nigeria for eleven days on the command and instruction of IGP, Mr. Mohammed Adamu of the Nigeria Police on account of a complaint written by the Katsina State government against me, in which I was assumed to be guilty before I was arrested.

“When I was detained in that cell, I perceived an odour within the compartmentalized cell. So, I took it upon myself to go round in spite of my circumstances, and I came across 24 young men; 17 Christians, 7 Muslims packed in one cell, sleeping on the floor and smelling all over, incarcerated, no voice, no support. They were only surviving by the grace of God.

“The following morning, I took it upon myself to assume that I have no injury, and I must take steps to heal their own injuries,” Mr. Shehu said.

He disclosed the names of the detainees to include: Mohammed Madu 25 from Chibok, Borno State; Wukade Yusuf, 28 from Borno; Umar Ali 24 Kano; Mohammed Musa 23 Borno; Dahiru Ahmed 25 Borno; Usman Adamu 26 Borno, Jamila Mohammed 22 Katsina State; Usman Abubakar 24 Kano among others.

Speaking why the job applicants are being held, the whistleblower said, “I interview these young men. In the first place, when the Federal Government wanted to complement the shortfall in the Nigeria police force, they advertised for people to apply for the Nigeria police force constables. These young men said they applied because they met all the criteria for the application.

“Subsequently, they received invitation that they were to attend the entrance examination. They attended the exams in various police commands across the country; they were invited to police training college in Maiduguri. They arrived on the 20 October, 2019, and they were informed by Inspector Yerima Augustine that they have responded and have been invited as per the invitation that they submitted, but that he was sorry to inform them that people from their own states over-applied, therefore, their names were on the reserve list. That they should go and come back in three days, to whether other people from their own states have not reported, and then they would replace them.

“After three days, on October 23, 2019, they were informed by the same Inspector Yerima Augustine that states they come from have over-applied, and that if they are still interested in joining the force, there are other states where most candidates had not turned up. And that they should go home and bring along with them the sum of N700, 000 each if they are interested.

“These young men are jobless; they went back to their respective states as far as Taraba, Borno, Yobe, to go and get the money.

“One of these men said, three of his sisters were to get married and for the last five years, they have been saving money to get them married out, but their mother weighed the pros and the cons and she gave him N700, 000 from those marriages that have not taken place. And another of the applicant said his father sold three of his farm and sold eight of his cows to raise N700, 000. Another said his father divided his house into two, sold half and raised the money. In any event, they all returned with the money; which was called a levy, and they handed that money to admin officer DSP Iliya Kija at Police Training College in Maidugiri.

“However, one Philip John who could not give cash; transferred the sum of N500, 000 into the personal bank account of DSP Iliya Kija. We have the evidence of the teller with which the money was paid.

“Also, Karlos James also transferred the sum of N700, 000 into Sgt John Monday’s personal account. The evidence of the transfer is also available. Twenty-two other applicants gave their money in cash to DSP Iliya Kija.

“Having paid that money, 24 of them they were informed to resume the following day 28 October, 2019, for training and bring along with them all the originals of their credentials. On arrival, all their files containing their credentials were handed over and collected by Inspector Yerima Augustine.

“On November 4, 2019, they were issued with serial number which is called service numbers, and were told that the service numbers would be their identity henceforth, not their own names. On 28 October 2019 to 24 July, 2020, (six months) they received extensive training; physical, mental, arms training, arms dismantling and arms reassembling. They went for shootings endless times. Three months into the training, they were called upon and informed that an IGP team would come to the training college to audit the trainees, and that they were going to be given new names which must use and adopt in the event of being asked, but that after the IGP team has gone back, they would go back to their original names.”

Mr. Shehu lamented that, “These young men were deceived, cajoled and initiated into giving out money because they needed they job. They never knew the jobs were meant for other people. They have not been taken to court and they have not been granted bail.”

“The governor along with Senator Kabiru Gaya wrote a petition to the IGP; complaining that 24 slots meant for Kano State as entrance into the Nigeria police force had been sold by officials of the Maidugiri police command.

“The IGP endorsed the petition for investigation. Between 1 July and 5 July, 2020, all of these 24 young me were arrested for 18 days in different cells under Kano police command. They narrated to me that in those 18 days, they had not taken their bathe for the day; they were packed in one cell; they were urinating and excreting that same cell using polythene bags and they were fed only once in a day, there was total restriction of their relations from coming to visit them.

“On 25 July, all of th3 24 young men were transferred to the Force CID headquarters in Area 10, Abuja, where I was also detained, where I met them for the first time. Since 25 of July, up till now, December 8, 2020, these 24 young men are still under lock and key, no visitors, no sanitation, no food. They are left to chances. They are being infested by maggots and lies all over their bodies. Some of them if care is not taken will have mental derailment. They are already completely demoralized! They have lost focus and all of them told me that if this is Nigeria, they have lost hope in Nigeria. They are currently in police cell.

“What will amaze you is that they were arrested by Interpol and kept in the cell by Interpol and ASP Dahiru has been threatening them that he would ensure that they are all executed.”

Thenigerialawyer

A legal practitioner and legal advicer to the NBA Kano branch, Mr. Ibrahim Abdullahi, has petitioned the Kano State Judicial Service commission over what he described as the unbefitting and unguarded utterance of a Chief Magistrate in the state on December 23, 2020, according to Nigerian Sketch.

The petition was addressed to the Chief Registrar of the Kano State High Court, and copied the State’s Chief Judge, the State’s Judicial Service Commission, as well as the National Judicial Service Commission. Also copied in the petition where the State’s branch of the National Magistrate Association, the NBA branches of Kano and Ungogo, as well as the NBA President.

The petitioner had alleged in the petition that the said Chief Magistrate stationed at the Magistrate Court No. 4, Gidan Murtala, Kano State, had referred to his application for adjournment in a criminal proceeding as ‘Nonsense’.

TheNigeriaLawyers gathered that the petitioner had appeared before the said Chief Magistrate in a criminal matter —COP v. Samba Usman & 3 Ors, on the 23rd day of December, 2020, only to be informed by the prosecutor that the nominal complainant and the accused had reached a form of plea agreement, which would see the defendant plead guilty to the offence, and that his services (the petitioner) would no longer be needed as he had been debriefed by the accused.

Trouble however started when the petitioner requested a short adjournment from the court, in other to enable him properly brief the lawyer for whom he was holding the brief in the suit, but the Magistrate would have none of that, and rather than accept or decline the request, the said Chief Magistrate went ahead to refer to the request made as ‘nonsense’. The Magistrate is alleged to have said “I will not write this nonsense. This is nonsense.”

The petitioner further alleged that he had called the attention of the Chief Magistrate to the implication of the use of the derogatory word, but still she defiantly continued to make use of the word. He however requested that his application be on the Court’s record for the day, after which she overruled his application.

Mr. Abdullahi noted in the petition that he had also applied said record of proceedings for that day, only for the Chief Magistrate to order him out of the court noting that he wasn’t a Counsel in the suit, “…as far as I am concerned (referring to herself), you are not a Counsel in this matter, get out of my Court..” the Magistrate is alleged to have said.

Mr. Abdullahi is therefore seeking disciplinary action against the said Chief Magistrate, and an apology letter from her Worship, which should be published in the Daily Trust Newspaper, as well as all the Notice boards at the Kano State High Court and Magistrate Courts’ Complexes. As at the time of filing this report neither the Chief Magistrate, nor the State’s Judicial Service Commission have responded to the petition.

Thenigerialawyer

France re-introduced Airport Transit Visa (ATV) requirement for citizens of certain nationalities that holds a British long-stay visa.

France has re-introduced Airport Transit Visa (ATV) requirement for citizens of certain nationalities that holds a British long-stay visa or a British residence permit and who are travelling to Great Britain from January 1, 2020.

The nations affected are Afghanistan, Angola, Nigeria, Niger, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Central African Republic, Cuba, Congo, Chad, Dominican Republic, Ethiopia, Iran, Mali and Iraq amongst others.

This was disclosed by Air France via mail sent to its passengers that had booked flights slated for January 1, 2020.

The airline explained that from the said date the passengers will have to be in possession of the ATV if they want to transit through France to Great Britain.

The development was also confirmed by France, via its official website, when it stated that European right will no longer apply within the UK from 1 January 2021, which marks the end of the transition period.
It stated,

• “The regulations governing the movements of UK citizens and their family members will change from that date onwards. The regulations governing the movements of some third countries nationals residing in the United Kingdom will also change from that date onwards.”

Withdrawal agreement
• You are a British citizen/family member of a UK citizen and you moved to France before the end of the transition period, i.e. before the 1st of January 2021: You benefit from the withdrawal agreement and can continue to reside in France.
• You are entitled to a residency permit ‘withdrawal agreement’ of either 5 years (if you have lived in France for less than 5 years) or 10 years (if you have lived in France for more than 5 years): You will need to request this residency permit online before the 1st of July 2021. You will have until the 1st of October 2021 to complete the procedure and have the actual residency permit.
• You are a British citizen, have been married or in an established relationship with a French National prior to the 1st of January 2021 and moved to France prior to that date: You benefit from the withdrawal agreement and can continue to reside in France.
• Established relationship – either a PACS or durable, duly attested relationship: If you move to France after the 1st of January 2021, you will need to apply for a Long Stay visa.
• You are the family member of a British citizen and have not moved to France by the 31st of December 2020: If you are moving to France to be with your British family member, who already resides in France or if the ties that link you with your British family member were established by the 31st of December 2020, you will need to apply for a short-term Schengen entry visa. This will be granted free of charge, on the basis of an accelerated procedure upon evidence of your relationship and of documents showing that your British family member benefited from the withdrawal agreement.
• You are a British citizen and you are moving to France after the 1st of January 2021: You cannot benefit from the withdrawal agreement and the common laws on the entry and residence of third-country nationals apply. You will therefore need to submit an application for a Long Stay visa (staying more than 90 days in France) to the French Consulate General London if you are a UK resident or to the French Consulate in the country you live in.

What it means
Passengers may still travel/apply for a visa with their British passport issued prior to the 1st of January 2021 until it expires (even if bearing the mention – European Union).
Also, according to information extracted from France’s website, British citizens do not require a visa if spending up to 90 days over a 180 days period in the Schengen area.

The Ekiti State Judicial Panel of Inquiry probing into issues of human rights abuses allegedly perpetrated by the police and other allied matters in the state, has recommended aggregate payment of N1.5 million as compensation to six petitioners, who brought their cases before the panel.

The panel at its resumed sitting Wednesday and presided over by the Chairman , Justice Cornileus Akintayo, took the decisions as part of its resolutions to ameliorate the sufferings of the victims.

In the case of Inspector Omokhua Benjamin, whose car was vandalised when some hoodlums attacked Ikere police station during the EndSARS protest, the panel recommended N400,000.00 as compensation for him.

It also approved a sum of N50,000.00 for Omokhua’s personal property that were destroyed at the Afao police station official quarters, Ikere Ekiti.

The panel also recommended a compensation of N400,000 for Inspector Yakubu Aminu, for his damaged Golf 3 car with registration Number AG828KER which was burnt by the EndSARS protesters.

In the case of Inspector Alabi Samuel, the panel recommended that the complainant be compensated with a sum of N170,000, for his stolen motorcycle put at N100,000 and other property valued at N70,000.

Also, in the case of one Ojo Michael, the panel recommended that he should be compensated with a sum of N242,00 instead of N5million being requested to repair his vehicle vandalized on 20th October, 2020 on his way to his house at Afao, Kajola, Ikere Ekiti by hoodlums during the ENDSARS protest.

Justice Akintayo also recommended a sum of N142,000 as compensation to one Adekola Olawale, a cameraman to purchase his damaged camera and medical bill , having been beaten by hoodlums during the protest.

The Chairman ordered that a sum.of N130,000 be paid to Mr Kolawole Adesina to repair his damaged vehicle.

The panel, however , recommended that “current particulars of the vehicles and motorcycles should be made a condition precedent for the payment of the recommended amounts.

“It is regrettable that the complainants were driving the vehicles and motorcycles for four years without valid and current vehicle particulars”.

Thenigerialawyer

The body of Late Justice Sylvanus Nsofor, the former Nigerian ambassador to the US, is set to be flown back home on Wednesday for burial.

Nsofor, a retired justice of the Court of Appeal, died in the US on Dec 10 after a brief illness. He was 85 years old.

Ahead of the repatriation, the Nigerian Embassy in Washington DC hosted a service of songs in his honour on Tuesday evening.

The hybrid ceremony, held at the embassy in Washington, attracted dignitaries from the diplomatic community in the US, Nigerian officials, embassy staff and family members of the late envoy.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, in-person attendance was limited to 10, while other guests, including officials of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, attended remotely.

Different speakers, including Ms Cam Henderson, Chief of Protocol at the US Department of State, and Barfuor Jadjei-Barwuah, Ghanaian ambassador to the US, eulogised Nsofor’s exemplary life.

Henderson said the former ambassador was a great member of the diplomatic corps for whom she had “great affection”, due to his humility and sense of humour.

According to her, the late ambassador was always available at the State Department’s engagements with members of the diplomatic community.

“He was a gentleman and would be missed by members of the diplomatic corps and by us in protocol,” she said.

Jadjei-Barwuah also paid glowing tributes to Nsofor, describing him as a friend who was “tough, honest, clear and straight as an arrow”.

He highlighted the late envoy’s humility with a story of how Nsofor insisted on personally opening the door for him when he visited him at the Nigerian embassy.

“We became friends afterwards, and I am having difficulty coping with the fact that I won’t see him any more,” he said.

In his eulogy, the former envoy’s son, Mr Cross Nsofor, stated that his father stood firmly for truth and justice, a legacy he pledged to sustain.

“Everybody talks about his transparency, his passion for justice, and I take a step back and ask: are we just echoing those words?

“We should live the truth and walk the truth. We, his children, will try and live and speak the truth no matter whose horse is gored.”

Speaking on behalf of the embassy staff, the Charge D’Affaires, Mrs Jane Adams, said Nsofor would be remembered as a very disciplined man.

Adams added that the late envoy was a man of his words, who hardly missed an opportunity to counsel members of staff on the need to live above board.

In a brief sermon, the officiating priest, Fr Cornelius Ejiogu, said through Nsofor’s exemplary life, God is asking people to live lives worthy of emulation.

Ejiogu urged everyone to strive for righteousness, peace, and justice in order to make the world a better place.

Speaking with the News Agency of Nigeria, the former ambassador’s wife, Mrs Jean Nsofor, said she was taking solace in her husband’s good legacies.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr Geoffrey Onyeama, and the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry, Gabriel Aduda, attended the event virtually.

The Governor of Kogi State, Alhaji Yahaya Bello has sworn in a new Chief Judge of the State and President, Kogi State Customary Court of Appeal.

They are Justices Henry Olusiyi and John Olowosegun.

Speaking after the justices took their oath of office at the Banquet Hall, Government House, Lokoja, Governor Bello urged the judicial officers to improve on the system and ensure effective adjudication process in the state.

The governor who sought the collaboration of all arms of government restated his administration’s commitment towards upholding the principles of separation of powers.

Bello further paid glowing tribute to the late Chief Judge of the state, Justice Nasir Ajana and late President, Customary Court of Appeal, Kogi State, Justice Shuaibu Atadoga.

In a remark, the newly sworn-in Chief Judge, Justice Henry Olusiyi applauded Governor Bello for the transparency exhibited in the process leading to their emergence.

Speaking on his plans, Justice Olusiyi said courts in the state were being sensitised on the need to ensure quick dispensation of justice.

He added that measures were also in place to employ digitisation of the Judiciary in the state.

Earlier, Kogi State Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Muhammed Sani Ibrahim SAN, explained that the two jurists were thoroughbred and had distinguished themselves while serving in acting capacities.

The Kogi State Governor, Alhaji Yahaya Bello had in July appointed Justices Olusiyi and Olowosegun as Chief Judge and President Customary Court of Appeal to fill the positions in acting capacities following the demise of former Chief Judge, Justice Nasir Ajana and Justice Shuaibu Atadoga.

Thenigerialawyer