Re: USA Africa Dialogue Series - I didn’t attack Court of Appeal Justices, says NBA president

For an NBA President i think that was close. The comments were just given a liberal interpretation by the reporter. --- On Fri, 1/28/11, Mobolaji ALUKO <alukome@gmail.com> wrote: From: Mobolaji ALUKO <alukome@gmail.com> Subject: USA Africa Dialogue Series - I didn't attack Court of Appeal Justices, says NBA president To: "USAAfrica Dialogue" <USAAfricaDialogue@googlegroups.com>, "NaijaPolitics e-Group" <NaijaPolitics@yahoogroups.com>, "OmoOdua" <OmoOdua@yahoogroups.com>, "ekiti ekitigroups" <ekitipanupo@yahoogroups.com>, "nigerianid@yahoogroups.com" <nigerianID@yahoogroups.com>, "naijaintellects" <naijaintellects@googlegroups.com>, "Naija Elections" <naijaelections@yahoogroups.com>, "Ekiti peoples voice Ekiti peoples voice" <ekitipeoplesvoice@yahoogroups.com> Date: Friday, January 28, 2011, 12:21 AM THE NATION I didn't attack Court of Appeal Justices, says NBA president Our Reporter 28/01/2011 00:17:00 The attention of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) has been drawn to the avalanche of unguarded comments emanating from the false and mischievous reporting of one Ise-Oluwa Ige (correspondent of the National Mirror) carried out on the front page of the National Mirror- a new entrant to the stable of national dailies in Nigeria-with the headline 'Appeal Court Justices Integrity doubtful – NBA' The said newspaper carried in the body of the story the following false and indeed misleading statements; (i) That the NBA could not vouch for the integrity of the nations Court of Appeal Bench and that it vowed to investigate the allegation by Senator Iyiola Omisore that the Action Congress of Nigeria paid a whopping N5 billion bribe for the judgment that ousted former Osun State Governor Olagunsoye Oyinlola from office. (ii) That the NBA could vouch for other Courts including the Supreme Court and trial courts but that it could never vouch for the Court of Appeal. (iii) That the credibility of Appeal Court Justices is in doubt and (iv) That the Appeal Court should stop eroding the course of justice by giving conflicting judgments. · The NBA declares that the entire story put out by Ise-Oluwa Ige and the National Mirror is not only false but a figment of the imagination of the said reporter. A transcript of the remarks made by the NBA President Joseph Bodunrin Daudu SAN at the event of the inauguration of the new branch officers of the Abuja Branch of the NBA on January 19, unedited and unabridged is annexed herewith for ease of reference. Out of a 4 page address only ¾ of a page was devoted to the issue of superior appellate courts and it is hereby reproduced; 'One last point which I'd like to make, is that I am greatly impressed at the confidence with which the chairman of the Bar of the branch has for the judiciary of the High Court for the Federal Capital Territory. That he is able to say this in black and white, speaks a lot for both the leadership in the bench for both the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory and the calibre of judges that work in this jurisdiction. But unfortunately, when asked what was my position about the Court of Appeal as regards what Senator Omisore wrote in the papers a few days ago. I could not come out in all sincerity to make a defense as your chairman has done for the High Court here. Well, all I said was that the Bar would look at it at its NEC meeting and would take an aggregate of views. But again going back to the chairman's speech. He made two important points; the first is that, when the facts are similar, the judgments must be uniform throughout the country. Coming from a young man at the Bar, one would expect that those who are older at the Bar and who sit in panels in courts should also know that, and when you find a situation whereby there are discordant judgments coming from the same panel on similar issues, that gives a room for inference that each case is being considered on different yard sticks. Whereas they are similar, so I join him in drawing the attention of superior courts, especially superior appellate courts, to the growing complaint. That is where the judgments cannot be uniform it makes it very impossible for us to stand up and defend when an institution as veritable as the Court of Appeal is being attacked on the basis of inconsistency. We cannot speak out at NEC and defend the situation; we cannot until the situation improves.' · Clearly from the foregoing, the only remark made by the NBA President concerning the issues raised by Senator Omisore on the outcome of the Osun Gubernatorial Election is that it will be discussed at the next National Executive Committee meeting of the NBA and there an aggregate of the views will be taken. The other issues discussed were in the context of the remarks made by the newly sworn-in Chairman of the Abuja Branch Mazi Afam Osigwe on the inconsistent judgments ostensibly on identical facts made by 'superior appellate courts'. The NBA President joined in abhorring the growing trend of lack of uniformity in court judgments. How this legitimate remark on a strictly legal issue made in the overall interest of the legal profession can be linked to Senator Omisore's grouse beats our imagination. It is also obvious that the NBA did not at any time exonerate the trial courts and apex court from corruption while singling out the Court of Appeal for special mention. ·The NBA observes with regret that a great host of personalities ranging from senior members of the Bar, senior judicial officers and professional bloggers have all fallen over themselves to condemn the NBA president in public without (i) requesting for the original material from which Ise-Oluwa Ige concocted his false and malicious story in order to verify the contents, more so as this was the only newspaper from among the over 15 credible national dailies that covered the event who reported such a story (ii) observing the age old principle of audi alterem partem by simply inquiring from the president if the remarks or statement alluded to him was made at all before even going to the next stage of whether they are correct or not. ·It is distressing to note that members of the Bar will come out in the open to unguardedly condemn the President of the NBA for making a statement on behalf of the Bar. It has long been settled that when the NBA President speaks he does so unquestioningly for the entire Bar. In doing so he enjoins a presumption of correctness that can only be displaced by NEC. It follows that any member of the Bar that has a problem with the NBA President's views can only make his objection known at a NEC meeting or at the Annual General Conference. · Finally, the NBA remains committed in its fight against corruption in every facet of the society. Being a responsible body, its leadership knows the appropriate time and place to take up matters of this nature. It will remain undaunted in its determination to ensure that corruption is eliminated from our body polity especially the judiciary and that good governance and excellent administration of justice prevails. ____________________ THE NATION Lawyers lash NBA president over comments on Appeal Court Justices  Eric Ikhilae Joseph Jibueze and Damisi Ojo 26/01/2011 00:15:00 Following his criticisms of the Justices of the Court of Appeal, the Nigeria Bar Association (NBA) President, Joseph Daudu has been under attack. Senior lawyers say his position does not give him the licence to issue such a sweeping condemnation, Eric Ikhilae Joseph Jibueze and Damisi Ojo speak with the eminent lawyers Senior lawyers yesterday reacted angrily to the condemnation of Justices of the nation's appellate court by the President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Joseph Daudu. Some described it as contemptuous; others simply called for a retraction. Prof. Itse Sagay, Chief Felix Fagbohungbe, Chief Adegboyega Awomolo, Mr Dele Belgore, Dr. Joseph Nwobike (all Senior Advocates), Mr. Ade Adedeji and Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa condemned Daudu's sweeping condemnation of Justices of the Court of Appeal. The NBA President was reported last week to have cast aspersions on the honesty of the appellate court Justices and questioned their integrity for allegedly granting "contradictory decisions". Besides, he said some allegations against their Lordships by Senator Iyiola Omisore, who was ruing the verdict that kicked his party out of the Government House, would be probed.  Fagbohungbe and Prof. Sagay said they were not convinced that Daudu, actually uttered the statement he was credited with. He could have been misquoted, they said. "J.B. Daudu is my friend and brother. I do not expect him to talk like that. His position today as the President of the Nigerian Bar does not allow him to make such statements. He must know that it is part of his responsibility to protect the Judiciary. "How could he have said that? Has he read the judgments by the Appeal Court Justices? What evidence has he to reach such conclusion? "He ought to have castigated people like Omisore. I expected him to have dragged people like Omisore to court or before any disciplinary body for what he did.  Omisore can not castigate judges openly to the extent of taking advertorials in the papers. "There are avenues to air his grievance, if he has any. What he did is in bad faith. He acted wrongly by placing advertorial to castigate judges.  "Daudu is a very senior lawyer. I believe he must have been misquoted and quoted out of context. What is the source of information? Where did he get the facts to reach such a conclusion?" "Sagay is shocked at the statement". "That is not the position of the Bar. I can tell you without any fear or favour that what the NBA President said was not consistent with the facts on ground," he said, adding: "The Court of Appeal is the one that has redeemed the image of the Judiciary with landmark judgments. He must have been misquoted and he needs to clarify his statement without delay; otherwise, he will lose respect." Nwobike said the judiciary should not be unduly criticised. "I believe that the judiciary is being unfairly and unjustifiably vilified by politicians. The NBA should not be a tool towards achieving that purpose,"   "Daudu, as far as I am concern, spoke for himself and not the Nigerian Bar that he currently heads. He also did not speak for the Body of Benchers to which I belong. "I will want to dissociate myself with the comment credited to the NBA President. It is highly uncharitable of him. It is unkind to the judges, particularly those members of the various electoral appeal tribunals across the country," Nwobuke said. Adedeji said the statement is malicious and contemptuous of the Judiciary.  "As the NBA President, he did not have the right to make such a statement, condemning the Judiciary. He should know that as the head of the Bar, his position would be construed as that of the entire Bar, which is not true. "He should know that as the President of the Nigerian Bar, it is part of his responsibility to protect the integrity of the Judiciary, else its integrity will be maligned.  Adegboruwa   said although since the Eso panel of 1994 reported corruption on the Bench, there have been the impression that there are corrupt judges, that  was not enough for the NBA President to have made such a sweeping condemnation. "Judges are human being. It is possible that there are corrupt ones among them. That can not lead to a wholistic condemnation. It lies with the Bar to investigate any allegation of corruption, not concluding from newspaper reports. "We can not engage in general condemnation until a painstaking investigation is carried out to identify the corrupt ones. He (Daudu) went about it wrongly by engaging in sweeping condemnation. Awomolo  criticised Senator Iyiola Omisore, representing Osun East Senatorial District for allegedly maligning the judiciary over Osun Appeal tribunal. He described him as a frustrated politician who is not fit to be a senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Awomolo also flayed the federal lawmaker for his comment in the media that the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) bribed some judges of the Court of Appeal with N5billion to procure the judgment of the Appeal tribunal on the Osun governorship election in favour of its candidate, Mr. Rauf Aregbesola. The Senior Advocate who spoke with reporters in Ado-Ekiti, the Ekiti State capital, described the senator's claim as reckless. He said: "For me, I would take it as he (Daudu) has made his opinion to the press. His opinion does not represent the position of the Bar. The former Commissioner for Justice in Osun State queried the NBA president for making such a statement against the judges especially when the allegation raised by the senator had not been investigated. Dismissing Senator Omisore's allegation as one that does not deserve any attention by well-meaning Nigerian, the senior lawyer reminded Senator Omisore as a beneficiary of the "goodness of the judicial system." He recalled that but for the judiciary; the senator should be "languishing" in jail by now for allegation that he (Omisore) killed a former attorney general and minister of justice, Chief Bola Ige. "Because this time around the decision of the court did not favour him, he is making such frivolous, reckless and irresponsible statement. As far as I am concerned, it is a statement that deserves no attention. For me I think he does not deserve to be a senator of Nigeria . Belgore  described the statement credited to Daudu as "very sad" and "totally regrettable" if indeed the NBA President made the statement attributed to him. He said Daudu, on the contrary, should help to defend the integrity of the bench rather than cast aspersions on it, adding: "You must not wreck the public's confidence in the judiciary." He added that if indeed Daudu was not misquoted, a person of his caliber and office would definitely not be expected to make such sweeping statement against justices of the Court of Appeal. _____________________________________________________________________________________________   -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the "USA-Africa Dialogue Series" moderated by Toyin Falola, University of Texas at Austin. 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