Group of law experts in Abuja has faulted the manner in which Governor Hope Uzodinma of Imo State appointed the fourth most senior judge in the\u00a0 judiciary as the Acting Chief Judge of the High Court. The lawyers, who are members of Lawyers for Civil Liberty, led by Victor Opatola, argued that Uzodinma\u2019s action \u201cis not only unconstitutional, but undermines the entire structure of judicial order, seniority and independence.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Speaking in Abuja, yesterday, the group expressed fear about the impact of the development on the entire fabric of the nation\u2019s judiciary and its time-tested culture of respect for seniority and hierarchical order.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The group commended the National Judicial Council, NJC, for distancing itself from Uzodinma\u2019s decision and urged it to stand its ground and compel the him to retrace his steps.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The NJC had, in a statement on April 4, faulted the governor\u2019s decision and distanced itself from the process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The NJC said, in the statement, that it is yet to consider a request by Uzodinma to appoint Justice Theophilus Nzeukwu, who is currently number four in the hierarchy of judges\u2019 seniority in Imo State High Court.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Lawyers for Civil Liberty said the development in Imo State is worrisome considering that \u201cthis is not the first time such issue of bypassing judicial seniority in selecting a chief judge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIn 2021, Justice C.A. Ononeze-Madu, the second most senior judge, was sidestepped, while Justice Theresa Chikeka was appointed. And now, the fourth in the line of seniority has been appointed again in violation of constitutional standards.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThis repeated pattern should deeply trouble every stakeholder in the judiciary. It is not a mistake and unless the National Judicial Commission takes a firm and immediate stand, this behaviour will harden into precedent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe are aware of various efforts at justifications premised on the ground that the three most senior judges are not appointable. We most humbly state that such decision is for the NJC.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIn this case, we believe that there are no excuses, no justification and no political convenience that should override Section 271 of the Constitution.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThis is not just about Imo State. What is allowed today becomes the norm tomorrow. If this goes unchecked, governors across the federation will feel emboldened to choose chief judges like personal aides; appointing favourites over the most senior, most qualified judges.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhen junior judges accept appointments they know are not theirs to take, they do more than violate tradition. They undermine the very structure that legitimises their office.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAnd, when the NJC fails to act, it sends a dangerous message: that the rules are bendable, that political convenience can trump the constitution and that the judiciary is no longer guided by principle and law, but by influence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cRight now, silence is not golden, NJC must not just frown in silence; it must speak. It must investigate. It must discipline. Because every time it fails to act, it confirms the public\u2019s worst fears.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe must insist on fidelity to the constitution\u2014not because it is convenient, but because it is essential.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe must demand that those who lead our courts be men and women who have risen by merit, not by proximity to power and influence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe must remind ourselves that every act of silence in the face of abuse enables and emboldens the abuser.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe people are watching, so are the lawyers, who still believe in the majesty of the law. And, if the NJC will not act, then it, too, must answer for what the silence has cost us.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cJustice does not defend itself, it requires guardians. And in this moment, the Judiciary must prove that it is strong enough to resist those who would bend it, and humble enough to correct its own missteps.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIf it cannot, then the fear is no longer that justice will be delayed\u2014but that it will be forgotten.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Group of law experts in Abuja has faulted the manner in which Governor Hope Uzodinma of Imo State appointed the fourth most senior judge in the\u00a0 judiciary as the Acting Chief Judge of the High Court. The lawyers, who are members of Lawyers for Civil Liberty, led by Victor Opatola, argued that Uzodinma\u2019s action \u201cis not only unconstitutional, but undermines the entire structure of judicial order, seniority and independence.\u201d Speaking in Abuja, yesterday, the group expressed fear about the impact of the development on the entire fabric of the nation\u2019s judiciary and its time-tested culture of respect for seniority and hierarchical order. The group commended the National Judicial Council, NJC, for distancing itself from Uzodinma\u2019s decision and urged it to stand its ground and compel the him to retrace his steps. The NJC had, in a statement on April 4, faulted the governor\u2019s decision and distanced itself from the process. The NJC said, in the statement, that it is yet to consider a request by Uzodinma to appoint Justice Theophilus Nzeukwu, who is currently number four in the hierarchy of judges\u2019 seniority in Imo State High Court. Lawyers for Civil Liberty said the development in Imo State is worrisome considering that \u201cthis is not the first time such issue of bypassing judicial seniority in selecting a chief judge. \u201cIn 2021, Justice C.A. Ononeze-Madu, the second most senior judge, was sidestepped, while Justice Theresa Chikeka was appointed. And now, the fourth in the line of seniority has been appointed again in violation of constitutional standards. \u201cThis repeated pattern should deeply trouble every stakeholder in the judiciary. It is not a mistake and unless the National Judicial Commission takes a firm and immediate stand, this behaviour will harden into precedent. \u201cWe are aware of various efforts at justifications premised on the ground that the three most senior judges are not appointable. We most humbly state that such decision is for the NJC. \u201cIn this case, we believe that there are no excuses, no justification and no political convenience that should override Section 271 of the Constitution. \u201cThis is not just about Imo State. What is allowed today becomes the norm tomorrow. If this goes unchecked, governors across the federation will feel emboldened to choose chief judges like personal aides; appointing favourites over the most senior, most qualified judges. \u201cWhen junior judges accept appointments they know are not theirs to take, they do more than violate tradition. They undermine the very structure that legitimises their office. \u201cAnd, when the NJC fails to act, it sends a dangerous message: that the rules are bendable, that political convenience can trump the constitution and that the judiciary is no longer guided by principle and law, but by influence. \u201cRight now, silence is not golden, NJC must not just frown in silence; it must speak. It must investigate. It must discipline. Because every time it fails to act, it confirms the public\u2019s worst fears. \u201cWe must insist on fidelity to the constitution\u2014not because it is convenient, but because it is essential. \u201cWe must demand that those who lead our courts be men and women who have risen by merit, not by proximity to power and influence. \u201cWe must remind ourselves that every act of silence in the face of abuse enables and emboldens the abuser. \u201cThe people are watching, so are the lawyers, who still believe in the majesty of the law. And, if the NJC will not act, then it, too, must answer for what the silence has cost us. \u201cJustice does not defend itself, it requires guardians. And in this moment, the Judiciary must prove that it is strong enough to resist those who would bend it, and humble enough to correct its own missteps. \u201cIf it cannot, then the fear is no longer that justice will be delayed\u2014but that it will be forgotten.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":24238,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[55],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-24236","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-judiciary"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/fctnewsgazette.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24236","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/fctnewsgazette.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/fctnewsgazette.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fctnewsgazette.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fctnewsgazette.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=24236"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/fctnewsgazette.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24236\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":24239,"href":"https:\/\/fctnewsgazette.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24236\/revisions\/24239"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fctnewsgazette.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/24238"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/fctnewsgazette.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=24236"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fctnewsgazette.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=24236"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fctnewsgazette.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=24236"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}