NGOs Threaten Civil Action Over Indicted Judges

Onyebuchi Ezigbo in Abuja

The Forum of Non-Governmental Organisations comprising over fifty bodies has threatened to disrupt operations in the judicial sector if judges accused of bribery were not prosecuted.

The forum said though the arrested judges/justices have not been declared guity by any court of law, their images have been tainted in the court of public opinion and they are no longer morally right to return to office until they have cleared themselves of the allegations.

The forum at a press briefing on Monday also called for immediate resignations of indicted judges saying they “have been tainted in the court of public opinion,” hence the need to clear themselves of the allegations against them.

Chairman of the forum, Wole Badmus, expressed worry over the apparent delay or hesitation on the part of the Nigerian Judicial Council (NJC) in addressing the corruption allegations against the affected judges.

“If the affected judges/justices fail to step down, we will mobilize Nigerians to besiege their courts until they have heeded the call to step down, which even their allies – the NBA – as well as the body of Senior Advocates of Nigeria, has endorsed,” he said.

“We will also embark on a peaceful demonstration in support of the battle to rid the judiciary of bad eggs. We want to say that this is not Buhari’s war, neither is it the war of any political party. It is the war of all Nigerians, and we call on all our citizens not to allow themselves to be misled by those who have constituted themselves to a stumbling block against this war. Wole Badmus, the Chairman of the Forum stated at a press conference held in Abuja.”