The All Progressives Congress, APC, in Rivers has called on the National Judicial Council, NJC, to drop retired Justice Iche Ndu and Okey Wali from its 10-person Judicial Ethics Committee.
The APC Publicity Secretary, Chris Finebone, made the call in a statement in Port Harcourt on Sunday.
Mr. Finebone said that the APC noted with shock their recent appointment as members of the 10-person Judicial Ethics Committee with a mandate to review the Code of Conduct for Judicial Officers in the country.
Messrs. Ndu and Wali, he alleged, were well-known Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, sympathisers, foot soldiers, close associates and unarguable ardent supporters of Governor Nyesom Wike.
“The APC vehemently rejects their inclusion in a critical committee such as the Judicial Ethics Committee of the NJC charged with an all-important task of reviewing the Code of Conduct for judicial officers.
“Indeed, their inclusion underscores the unwillingness and unpreparedness of the NJC to buy into the anti-corruption drive of the President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration.
“The APC views this action by the NJC as the height of insensitivity and brazen resistance to the efforts by the government to sanitise the Nigerian judiciary,” he said.
Mr. Finebone said that the Chairman of NJC and Chief Justice of Nigeria, CJN, Mahmud Mohammed, and the rest of the council members could not feign ignorance of the overt political leanings of Messrs. Ndu and Wali.
“We make bold to state that this obvious display of indiscretion by the CJN and the NJC smacks of inexplicable thoughtlessness, befuddles the mind and sears through good conscience,” he alleged.
He called on the NJC and Mr. Mohammed to drop Messrs. Ndu and Wali from the NJC 10-member Judicial Ethics Committee without delay.
Mr. Finebone urged the NJC to do the needful immediately or face a well-mobilised and long-drawn protest by the APC which would include occupying selected locations in Port Harcourt and Abuja.
Retired Justice Ndu and Mr. Wali were former Chief Judge of Rivers and President of the Nigerian Bar Association, NBA, respectively.