SECONDUS: CJN Tanko hammers Justices Gbassam, Koofreh, Umat for their ‘nonsense’

The Chief Justice of Nigeria, CJN, Justice Ibrahim Tanko Muhammad was mad with judges implicated in forum-shopping in the fight between Rivers Gov Nyesom Wike nd suspended PDP chairman Uche Secondus on September 6.

At a closed door meeting held at the National Judicial Council, NJC headquarters in Abuja with seven Chief Judges (CJs) over issuance of conflicting ex-parte orders in their territory, he vowed that NJC will no longer condone any of such from Judges.

In a fit of anger, Tanko interrogated separately each of Chief Judge, FCT, Abuja. Chief Judge, Rivers State, Chief Judge, Kebbi State, Chief Judge, Cross River State, Chief Judge, Jigawa State, Chief Judge, Anambra State and Chief Judge, Imo State.

In a statement issued by the NJC Director of Information, Mr Soji Oye, the CJN said that “damage to one jurisdiction is a damage to all”.

“There must be an end to this nonsense. You shall henceforth take absolute charge in assigning cases or matters, especially political personally,” the statement said in part.

“We shall make example with these three Judges and never shall we condone such act”.

He stated that three of the Judges—Edem Koofreh, Nusirat Umat, and O. Gbassam—who granted conflicting ex parte orders have been invited to appear before the National Judicial Council to show cause why disciplinary action should not be taken against them for granting the conflicting ex-parte orders.

The PDP ran round the three high courts in the course of the supremacy war between the two party men.

And the justice apparently offered themselves for what the CJN described as “nonsense”.

He warned the Chief Judges to henceforth avoid unnecessary assumption of jurisdiction in matters with similar subject and parties already before another court, protect the court from lawyers that are out for forum shopping and work in tandem with all their judges to salvage the image of the Judiciary.