The acting Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Tanko Muhammad has said that President Muhammadu Buhari does not require the permission of the National Judicial Council (NJC) to appoint him as acting CJN. He also made a startling disclosure that he was not aware CJN Walter Onnoghen was suspended before he (Tanko) was sworn in. He stated this while responding to a query by the NJC.
The query followed a petition by a group, Centre for Justice and Peace Initiative, which asked the NJC to strip him of his role as a justice of the Supreme Court for accepting the position of acting CJN without the council’s consent and approval.
Hear Tanko: “In my respectful view, the National Judicial Council has no role to play in the appointment of an acting Chief Justice of Nigeria in the first instance, that is to say on first appointment. The council comes in where the appointment as the acting CJN is to be renewed or extended. I humbly refer to Section 231(4) of the 1999 Constitution. It was for the larger interest of the judiciary and the constitutionality that I accepted to be sworn in as acting CJN with the conviction that if the order of January 23, 2019 is eventually set aside, the status quo would be restored. But before it is set aside, there should be no vacuum in the office of the CJN and the chairman of the NJC.”
He further said: “On January 25, 2019, I was summoned to the Aso Villa at the instance of the president. Prior to the summons, I was not aware of the fact that the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) made any order on January 23, 2019. Furthermore, beyond what I read in the newspapers and watched on the television, just like any other Nigerian, I was not privileged to see any of the processes filed by the parties before the tribunal. Hence, I could not really appreciate the merit or demerit of divergent positions. On the 25th day of January, the president swore me in as the acting CJN and not as the substantive CJN. Justice Walter Onnoghen remains the CJN until he is removed from office in accordance with the provision of the constitution. He is only suspended.”
Some legal practitioners however have disagreed with Tanko. Lagos-based lawyer, Anthony Omaghomi, said: “I personally think it is a very lame defence. I find it unacceptable. There is no such distinction in the constitution.” Abuja-based lawyer, Abubakar Sani, said: “Under the Interpretation Act, the president can only appoint an acting judge on the same terms as a substantive judge; that is on the recommendation of the NJC and subject to the approval of the Senate.”
But the executive director, Socio-Economic Right and Accountability Project (SERAP), Adetokunbo Mumuni, held a divergent view. “It is as simple as that. It is only when such appointment needs to be made substantive that the NJC would be involved,” he said.