Onnoghen opens defence at CCT

• Calls CCB Director as witness

The suspended Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Walter Onnoghen, on Monday opened his defence before the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) sitting in Abuja on charges non-declaration of assets and operation of domiciliary accounts. The suspended CJN commenced his defence as the Code of Conduct Tribunal resumed sitting Monday morning.

The CCT had on Friday dismissed Justice Onnoghen’s no-case submission, insisting that he has a case to answer, essentially, after he had admitted in writing that he forgot to declare his bank accounts as part of his assets. The CCT Chairman, Justice Danladi Umar, noted that the admission had dented the image of the CJN which he has to clear, and, therefore, ordered him to open his defence on Monday.

Counsel to Onnoghen, Adegboyega Awomolo SAN, had requested for time till Friday to study the arguments of the prosecution counsel to enable him prepare his defence, but the prosecution counsel and the chairman opposed him, saying that the condition for granting the CJN bail is that the trial will hold every day and he has to be present for the prosecution.

At the resumed sitting, Adegboyega Awomolo noted the proceedings from Friday’s hearing had not been made available to the defence.

He requested that a witness, Miss Theresa Nwafor of the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB), should be subpoenaed to appear as a witness for the CJN. The witness is the Director of the CCB in Benin City, Edo State

Awomolo also told the CCT Chairman that he ought to rule on his application before any other thing, a position the prosecution counsel did not object to.

In his ruling, the Tribunal chairman granted the request and ordered her to be at the tribunal on Wednesday by 10am.

A second witness, Lawal Busari, had taken the witness stand on behalf of Justice Onnoghen.

The Tribunal, thereafter, adjourned sitting.