The Integrity Group, is raising a red flag against the CJN over what it views as a deliberate attempt by the CJN to plunge the judiciary into an irrecoverable damage and disaster based on his alleged unholy political marriage with Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers state and other collegiate politicians.
The Integrity Group in press statement signed by it's founder, Barr. Livingstone Wechie, said that on 25th July 2017 the CJN had flagged off the construction of a Judges’ Quarters in Rivers state sponsored by the Rivers state Government in defiance to a caution we had raised in an letter acknowledged by the CJN wherein we advised him not to honour the invitation to the flagoff on the grounds that the project was not captured in any accessible Rivers state budget being that it was fraudulent and the Judiciary must not partake in it and secondly that the land on which the project was to be carried out is a subject of litigation (With a consent order of injunction) before the Rivers state High Court between the Total E&P Closed Pensions Funds Admin Ltd v Rivers state Government in Suit N0. PHC/1440/2015. The CJN in grave abuse of his oath of office, despite this warning went ahead and compromised the integrity of his office by conducting the flagoff on a land in litigation further disregarding the Caveat Emptor published on a National Daily by the Claimant Lawyer, Olasupo Shasore SAN on same property in 2017.
On record, we had petitioned the National Judicial Council (NJC) seeking the investigation of the CJN calling for his resignation but we are yet to hear from them. However the CJN reached out to us pleading that he was unaware of those developments in Rivers and that if he knew early enough, he would have avoided same. As a responsible organization, we owe a duty to hold public officers accountable. Unfortunately, a few days ago, the CJN visited the same Rivers state to commission the renovated Appeal Court Complex and the New Industrial Court Complex by the Wike led government and in his speech, he adopted the same argument with Governor Wike by descending into the political arena to wit, querying why in his words the Rotimi Amaechi administration (now Transportation Minister) must lock up the courts during the last administration as Governor, such prejudiced frontal political statements against the former governor that wane the confidence of the public on the judiciary which he heads.
Whereas our organization is not interested in the political divides in Rivers state, our interest is that the CJN who represents the trust of the public on the Institution that should give hope to the common man, our CJN has started dancing the macabre dance in Rivers politics in a manifest demonstration of partisanship interest over two political opponents. IT IS ON RECORD AGAIN THAT THE CJN HAS GONE TO RIVERS STATE TO RECEIVE A GIFT FROM THE GOVERNOR IN KIND OVER ANOTHER SET OF PROJECTS FOR THE JUDICIARY WHICH ACCORDING TO THE GOVERNOR COSTS HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS OF NAIRA OF RIVERS TAX PAYERS, AGAIN WITHOUT ANY ACCESSIBLE BUDGET, AN ACT LACED AND CRAFTED IN PROFLIGACY, CORRUPTION AND CRIMINALITY YET THE JUDICIARY IS GLADLY THE BIGGEST BENEFICIARY.
We are calling on the CJN to check his alleged appetite for easy compromise as he continues to give a judicial seal of approval to corruptly executed projects in Rivers state which have no proof of accessible budget provision particularly for Judges. Our greater concern over the perceived alliance between the CJN and the Rivers governor IS THE FACT THAT WE ARE IN AN ELECTION YEAR AND OUR RESPECTED CJN DOUBTLESSLY MAY HAVE BEEN POCKETED BY THE RIVERS STATE GOVERNOR AS WELL AS OTHER COLLEGIATE POLITICIANS AND THIS IS DANGEROUS TO THE ADMINISTRATION AND TRUST OF JUSTICE. We therefore INSIST THAT THE CJN JUSTICE WALTER ONNOGHEN GCON is now a great threat to the justice system as his integrity is in great doubt and so he is no longer fit to preside over the Nigerian Judiciary at this time in our nation.
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