The Vanguard for the Independence of the Judiciary (V4IJ), a Policy Think Tank, has condemned the invasion of the residence of the Hon. Justice Mary Peter-Odili (Justice of the Supreme Court), in Mataima, Abuja on the 29th of October, 2021.
In a statement released in Port Harcourt by the convener of the Vanguard-Douglas Ogbankwa Esq., in the Morning of Saturday the 30th October ,2021, the Vanguard stated thus: “It is quite ironic that on the Day the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) Annual General Conference in Port Harcourt ended -29/10/2021, when Lawyers in Nigeria gathered in defence of the rule of law, some gun men brandishing an Order obtained from an FCT Magistrate Court, invaded the Mataima Residence of Hon Justice Mary Peter-Odili (Justice of the Supreme Court), a purported report of a whistleblower whose address is not even indicated in the affidavit attached to his purported complaint.
The Vanguard states that the action of the federal government using a non-juristic body called “Asset Recovery Panel , Ministry of Justice”, smacks of a brazen attack on a Justice of the Supreme Court of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, albeit, the second highest ranking Justice of the Supreme Court.The Vanguard wonders what is the hope of the common man, if a Justice of the Supreme Court of the Federal Republic of Nigeria could be subjected to such show of terror, in the heart of the nation, in Abuja. The Vanguard also wonders if a Ministry of Justice that meted out such blatant injustice on a Justice of the Supreme Court- one of the upholders of our laws, can be qualified to be called the Ministry of Justice.
The Vanguard demands that everyone involved in the show of shame, starting with the Magistrate who signed the defective order, which does not even have the designation of parties should be held accountable and sanctioned accordingly.We call on the Federal Government to issue an unreserved apology to Hon Justice Mary Peter-Odili and every official involved in the legal heist be interdicted, while a comprehensive Investigation be conducted to unravel the circumstances of this move of utmost indiscretion.
Vanguard reminds the federal government that the fulcrum of a democratic government is an unconditional observance of the principles of the rule of law and respect for the fundamental human rights of citizens, as a society that does not conform to its own laws, is like a fish not conforming to the aquatic law and like a fish out of water, will die, except it retraces its steps,” the statement concluded.
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