Justice Oyebola Adepele Ojo, the state’s chief judge, was suspended, and the reason for this was provided by Speaker of the Osun State House of Assembly Adewale Egbedun.
The Nigerian Bar Association, the NBA, well-known individuals, civil society organizations, and others have criticized the state administration for the decision since the Osun CJ was suspended.
The Assembly had instructed Governor Ademola Adeleke to appoint Justice David Olayinka Afolabi as the Acting Chief Justice and suspend Justice Ojo.
Several civil society organizations (CSOs) have denounced the move and demanded that the Osun State House of Assembly immediately lift the suspension.
In turn, the NBA stated that it will not honor Justice David Olayinka Afolabi, the Acting Chief Justice, who, incidentally, failed to show up for his oath of office on Friday.
The National Judicial Council, NJC, is charged with upholding the constitution. This was stated by Speaker Adewale Egbedun of the Osun State House of Assembly in a statement released on Monday and signed by Chief Press Secretary Olamide Tiamiyu.
Instead, he said, the Osun State House of Assembly was carrying out its constitutional mandate to expose corruption in accordance with Section 128 (2) (b) of the Federal Republic of Nigeria’s 1999 Constitution, which states the following:
(2) The authority granted to a House of Assembly by this section may only be used to allow the House to:
(b) reveal instances of corruption, inefficiency, and waste in the application or management of legislation under its legislative purview, as well as in the distribution or management of monies authorized by it.
“The Osun State House of Assembly would have been negligent and in violation of its constitutional responsibilities if it had ignored the petitions given that it received several petitions alleging corruption against the Chief Judge of Osun State,” Egbedun continued.
For the public’s information, the following are some of the accusations made against the Chief Judge: 1. The money intended for the State Judiciary Library was diverted.
“2. The Osun State High Court brother judge’s robe allowance, which is around #5,000,000: 00 (Five Million Naira), was diverted.
- The random suspension of court employees without consulting the Judicial Commission and the misappropriation of their pay.
- The Government’s income was diverted from submitting electronic affidavits by hiring a consultant exclusively, as decided by the Chief Judge.
In this instance, the consultant receives $1000 on an affidavit but just $250 is sent to the state’s coffers.
- Ignorance of a court ruling that cleared a member of the judiciary of charges related to embezzlement of $30,000 in typing sheet funds.
Egbedun stated that the Governor of a State and the House of Assembly cannot remove a Chief Judge from office without the National Judicial Council’s involvement, even though they maintained that the Assembly was aware of the 1999 Constitution’s position and the Supreme Court’s rulings in various cases.
As a result, we ask pundits to exercise caution when making statements that might give the impression that the Chief Judge of Osun State has been ousted or that the House of Assembly plans to do so without consulting the National Judicial Council.
It’s important to note that the Osun State Chief Judge filed a complaint at the National Industrial Court in Ibadan, but the lawsuit did not list the Osun State House of Assembly as a defendant.
Furthermore, it is untrue for anybody to suggest that the Osun State House of Assembly acted against a court’s order of competent jurisdiction because the House of Assembly has not received any injunction connected to this complaint.
Misguided interpretations of its conduct would neither dissuade or affect the Osun State House of Assembly, he continued.
It is crucial to remember that the House is dedicated to preserving the Constitution and will not misuse its authority to further unlawful goals.
“The House of Assembly of Osun State will not yield to intimidation in the course of fulfilling its constitutional duties.”
