Penultimate Sunday and Monday, the Senate within twenty four hours, made forward and backward movements on suspension of Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN) Walter Onnoghen from office by President Muhammadu Buhari culminating in seeking interpretation of laws on the action at the Supreme Court. Taiye Odewale reports.
Suspension provokes movements
Senate’s forward and backward movements between Sunday (27th January 2019) and Monday (28th January 2019) over holding of an emergency plenary on Tuesday (January 29th 2019) which never held were sequel to the suspension of Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN) Walter Onnoghen from office by President Muhammadu Buhari on Friday, 25th January, 2019.
Before the approbation and reprobation of the upper legislative chamber on the action by the President, the two presiding officers i .e the Senate President, Bukola Saraki and Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu, had in separate statements, condemned the action as coup against the judiciary and by extension, democracy.
Specifically, Saraki in a personally signed statement dated January 25, 2019 said: “This is an action aimed at undermining the nation’s judiciary, subverting the constitution, intimidating judges of all the courts of record, and creating uncertainty in the electoral process, thereby laying the foundation for influencing the outcome of litigations that might arise from next month’s elections.
“There are already the general believe that this hasty action was taken to preempt the already scheduled inauguration of election petition tribunals by Hon. Justice Onoghen and to destroy national institutions that are perceived to be uncooperative in his bid to manipulate the electoral process leading to next month’s general elections.
“By unilaterally suspending the CJN without following the provision of the constitution, President Buhari has taken an action which amounted to gross misconduct. He has simply sent a dangerous signal to the entire world that Nigeria is no longer a democratic nation and that we have returned to the old, jaded era of military dictatorship.
“Our constitution makes no provision for suspension of the nation’s highest judicial officer. The constitution provides a clear process for removal of the CJN and specify the roles of the three arms of government, beginning from the National Judicial Council (NJC), the National Assembly and lastly, the Presidency, have different roles to play in that process.
“There is no condition under which the President can usurp the powers of other arms of government. I do not know where the President and his advisers got this idea of suspending the CJN on the so-called order of the Code of Conduct Tribunal but this is novel, disingenuous and alien to our laws.
“With this action, President Buhari has initiated a process the consequence of which nobody can predict. They have precipitated a constitutional crisis.
“At this point, all democratic institutions in the country, the international community and democrats across the world should rise against this blatant act of impunity. We should jointly condemn this retrogressive, uncivilized and despotic measure”.
Emergence session
Forty-eight hours after, specifically on Sunday 27th of last month, the Senate in a statement issued by its Clerk, Nelson Ayewoh , announced reconvening of the Senate’ plenary for Tuesday, 29th January , 2019 apparently to discuss the matter and possibly take a resolution on it.
The statement titled: “Resumption of Plenary ” reads in part:” This is to inform all Distinguished Senators of the National Assembly of the Federal Republic of Nigeria that resumption of plenary earlier scheduled for Tuesday, 19th February , 2019, has now been rescheduled for Tuesday, 29th January, 2019.
“Distinguished Senators are by this notice, requested to resume sitting in plenary on Tuesday 29th January, 2019 by 10:00am prompt please”.
U-turn
But barely twenty four hours after, the Clerk on Monday (28th January, 2019), issued another statement reverting reconvening of senate’s plenary to Tuesday, 19th February, 2019 which reads thus:””This is to inform all Distinguished Senators of the National Assembly of the Federal Republic of Nigeria that the resumption in Plenary Scheduled for tomorrow, Tuesday, 29th”“January, 2019 has been cancelled.
“The scheduled date of resumption in Plenary earlier fixed for Tuesday, 19th February, 2019, remains, please”.
Perhaps as a way of offering explanation for the sudden U- turn the Senate made on the emergency plenary, the Special Adviser to the Senate President on Media and Publicity, Yusuph Olaniyonu in another statement said: “Earlier today (Monday last week), the Senate filed a case in the highest court of the land, the Supreme Court, seeking its interpretation on whether President Muhammadu Buhari acted within the provision of the constitution in his suspension of the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Hon. Justice Walter Nkannu Onnoghen or whether the action of the President does amount to usurpation of the powers of the Senate as provided for in Section 292 of the constitution.
“Following the filing of the case, the matter of the suspension of the CJN which is the main issue for which the Senate had planned to reconvene tomorrow, has become subjudiced.
“Therefore, in line with the standing rules of the Senate not to debate issues that are already pending before the court, the reconvening of the Senate tomorrow has been put off. The previous adjournment of the Senate till February 19, 2019 stays”.
Halted showdown
Aside the problem of subjudice, information has it that the hurried cancellation of the Senate’s plenary last week Tuesday, also has to do with averting the imminent showdown that would have happened between Senators belonging to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and their counterparts in the Peoples Democratic Party ( PDP) over whatever resolutions to be adopted that day.
Feelers from both camps before the cancellation of the plenary, indicated that while the APC senators who are 56 in number were planning to frustrate adoption of any negative resolutions on the matter, their PDP counterparts who are 46 in number along with six others belonging to other parties, were planning for a senate’s resolution that will condemn Onnoghen’s suspension.
Little wonder that even after the cancellation of the planned plenary on account of approaching the Supreme Court for legal guidance, the Senate Leader and Minority leader, still made parallel submissions to the public on how the Senate actually arrived at the Supreme Court law interpretation intervention.
APC senators kick
While the Senate Leader, Ahmed Lawan (APC Yobe North) in a statement penultimate Monday, disassociated the APC caucus in the Senate from the law interpretation route, the Minority Leader, Biodun Olujimi (PDP Ekiti South) in a different statement 24hours after, accused Lawan of being mischievous.
Specifically, Lawan in his own statement said: ” We senators belonging to the ruling All Progressives Congress ( APC) in the Senate are not aware of the move taken for any interpretation of law by the Supreme Court on the CJN’ suspension.
“Such a move or line or action was not discussed at any meeting of the Senate leadership which ordinarily supposed to compose of the two presiding officers and eight principal officers.
“In the light of this, we disassociate ourselves from such move being an action taken by the PDP leaders in the Senate”.
But Olujimi in her own statement countered: “Authorisation of such decision is within the capacity of the two presiding officers of the Senate, making it absolutely wrong for the Senate leader, Ahmed Lawan, to say that the move was not authorised by the Senate.
“It is usually the prerogative of the presiding officers i . e , the Senate President and Deputy Senate President, to decide whether an issue concerning the chamber should be referred to the court for interpretation or adjudication as supported by precedents.
“I am surprised that a few of my colleagues in the APC Caucus, particularly the Senate leader, are spreading disinformation that they were not party to the decision to file a case seeking interpretation of the provision of the constitution concerning the President’s decision to suspend the CJN.
“Those who are saying this are just being mischievous. They know such a decision is not meant for debate on the floor of the Senate. It is the prerogative of the presiding officers and in this particular case, majority of the people in Senate leadership suggested and supported the idea.
“There is no precedent of when decision on whether to resort to court is referred to the plenary. And there are several cases that the Senate has been and is still involved in.
“Incidentally, our colleagues in the APC who are spreading this disinformation are those who have been in the Senate for many years and they know the rules, conventions and practices. That is why I consider their current position as mischievous…”.
With outcries and controversies over Onnoghen’s suspension by President Buhari fizzling out ahead of the coming elections, it is definitely on record that the Senate in the heat of the controversy, made forward and backward movements in its reaction to it.
