.Says action desperate act of dying dictatorship
By Daniel Kanu
Assistant Politics Editor
Former Presidential candidate of National Conscience Party (NCP) in the 2015 general election, Engineer Martin Onovo, has asked Nigerians, particularly, lovers of democracy, to rise up against the intimidation of the judiciary by the recent embarrassment of the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Walter Onnoghen.
Onnoghen was accused of failing to declare a series of bank accounts linked to him for several years in alleged violation of the code of conduct for public office holders.
Onovo said that the action of the government was that of a “last desperate act of a dying dictatorship”.
According to Onovo, “We have to look at the actual act and the motive. The act is clearly very unconstitutional, illegal and direct violation of the constitution with impunity.
“There is disciplinary process for serving judicial officers; why was it ignored? The motive is simply political. This executive has now translated itself to full dictatorship. They are trying to emasculate and crush the judiciary, legislature and the independent media.
“They are using sundry tactics and they have used gestapo style on some Supreme Court Justices but we shall not allow them.”
The astute Petroleum engineer noted further: “They have made frivolous indictment of Nigeria Bar Association (NBA) president and are desperately looking for every democratic institution to destroy.
“What is happening is a textbook tactics of dictatorship that wants maximum power”.
It would be recalled that no fewer than 47 Senior Advocates of Nigeria (SAN) stormed the code of Conduct Tribunal for the opening hearing of the alleged false assets declaration case against the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Onnoghen.
The charges against Onnoghen were initiated by a civil society group, Anti-Corruption and Research-Based Data Initiative (ARDI), said to be headed by Dennis Aghanya, a former aide of President Muhammadu Buhari.