…Orders Probe of Judges Involved
- By Halimah Olamide
The President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Mr. Yakubu Chonoko Maikyau, OON, SAN, has described the conflicting orders by two Kano courts amidst the ongoing Emirate tussle as disgraceful.
This was contained in a statement signed by the National Publicity Secretary of the association, Akorede Habeeb Lawal on Wednesday.
“The conducts of counsel and the Courts in the handling of the proceedings which culminated in the orders issued by the Federal High Court, the Kano State High Court and again the Federal High Court, in circus, have brought utter disgrace and shame to the profession – have exposed the entire legal profession in Nigeria to public ridicule and opprobrium.
“The damage is one that would take the legal profession a long time to recover from. It is unfortunate and was totally uncalled for.”
NPO reports that the two courts in Kano State issued conflicting interim injunctions on the Kano Emirate tussle.
Justice S. A. Amobeda of the Federal High Court in Kano on Tuesday ordered the eviction of the reinstated emir, Alhaji Muhammadu Sanusi II from Gidan Rumfa palace.
Meanwhile, Justice Amina Adamu Aliyu of Kano State High Court in a separate order, issued a directive restraining the police, the State Security Services (SSS) and the Nigerian Army from evicting, harassing or arresting Sanusi.
Mr. Maikyau further said that “Without prejudice to the subsisting actions before both the Federal High Court and the Kano State High Court, it is my considered view that there is urgent need to scrutinise the professional conducts of both Counsel and the Judges involved in these matters.
“This is to enable the relevant bodies or institutions determine their culpability or, otherwise, from an ethical and professional
standpoint.”
The NBA President has, therefore, called on the respective heads of the Courts of the Judges concerned, to take immediate steps to look into their conducts with the view to finding any possible abuse of their judicial offices and file a report with the National Judicial Council for necessary action.
As regards the lawyers involved, the NBA President has ordered a probe into the conducts and ensured commencement of disciplinary action against them before the Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee, should there be any finding of alleged professional misconduct against them.
“The Chairman of the NBA Ethics and Disciplinary Committee has accordingly been directed to invite these counsel for preliminary investigations.”