Don”t destroy judiciary with graft allegations, CJN warns FG

The Chief Justice of Nigeria, CJN, Walter Onnoghen, has warned the executive against destroying the judiciary with allegations of corruption.

The CJN maintained that the Federal Government should deal with the alleged corruption in the judiciary in line with the rule of law.

Onnoghen emphasised that no judge could do justice when presented with shoddy investigation and prosecution of corruption cases by the executive

This, according to the CJN is because the judge knows that such a thing would be reviewed in future.

"When you’re dealing with judicial corruption when one exists, you’ve to do it in accordance with the rule of law, and then channel whatever you have through the appropriate channels so that you don’t destroy that institution because destroying it will not make any good. It’ll do it more harm than good.

"When you have a shoddily investigated case, poorly executed one and you expect the judge who is under judicial oath to do justice to all manner of persons without fear of favour or ill will,  to respect you in balancing the scale, to convict willingly, this can never be done. I can assure you of that. No judicial officer will get himself involved in that.

"I’ve gone through all the heads of court in this country, federal and state courts, and they furnished me with data on EFCC, ICPC, terrorism cases and high profile information cases…Funny enough, no applications are abandoned in the court," he said.

Onnoghen regretted that the judiciary was being painted as if it were not doing enough in the prosecution of corruption cases.