Millions of dollars traced to suspended CJN’s, says Buhari

Chief Justice Onnoghen is in the eye of the storm over asset declaration

President Muhammadu Buhari has revealed the reason for the suspension of the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Walter Onnoghen, saying millions of dollars were traced to his accounts

He made this disclosure at the swearing in of the acting CJN, Tanko Mohammed  in Abuja on Thursday, where he said lawyers and some judges have made a mockery of  the non-disclosure of assets by Onnoghen as required by the law.

“Although the allegations in the petition are grievous enough in themselves, the security agencies have since then traced other suspicious transactions running into millions of dollars to the CJN’s personal accounts, all  undeclared or improperly declared as required by law”, Buhari said.

He claimed the country has been gripped by the tragic realities of no less a personality than the Chief Justice of Nigeria himself,  becoming the accused person in a corruption trial since details of the petition against him by a Civil Society Organization first became public about a fortnight ago.

“Although the allegations in the petition are grievous enough in themselves, the security agencies have since then traced other suspicious transactions running into millions of dollars to the CJN’s personal accounts, all  undeclared or improperly declared as required by law.

“Perhaps more worrisome is the Chief Justice of Nigeria’s own written admission to the charges that he indeed failed to follow the spirit and letter of the law in declaring his assets, citing ’’mistake’’ and ’’forgetfulness’’ which are totally unknown to our laws as defences in the circumstances of his case,” he noted.

He stated that the suspended CJN failed to swayed by the seriousness of corruption charges against him as the refused to remove himself from superintending over it while his trial lasted.

“Unfortunately, he has not done so. Instead, the nation has been treated to the sordid spectacle of a judicial game of wits in which the Chief Justice of Nigeria and his legal team have made nonsense of the efforts of the Code of Conduct Tribunal to hear the allegation on merit and conclude the trial as quickly as possible considering the nature of the times in which we live.

“Whether deliberately or inadvertently, we have all seen the full weight of the Chief Justice of Nigeria descend on the tender head of one of the organs of justice under his control. There is simply no way the officers of that court, from the Chairman to the bailiffs, can pretend to be unaffected by the influence of the leader of the Judiciary,” the President further said.