Young Progressives Party, YPP, has described call by the Federal Government for the resignation of Chief Justice of Nigeria, CJN, Justice Walter Onnoghen, as hypocritical.In a statement in Abuja, National Publicity Secretary of YPP, Mr. Olawale Egbeola, advised the presidency to allow the rule of law take its course without interference.
Egbeola said the rule of law remained one of the fundamental pillars of democracy and should not be subjected to intuition or the will of an individual or group, adding that anything short of this would be an invitation to anarchy.
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He said: “The Young Progressives Party, YPP, strongly condemns any acts of corruption by any individual or group irrespective of ethnicity, religion, social status or gender, but is of the firm belief that the law is supreme and is the basis upon which the war against corruption should be fought and won.
“The recent allegation over declaration of assets against the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Walter Onnoghen, is sad, especially coming at a time we are about to go into a general election that will ultimately define the destiny of our great country.
“We also observe that the haste by the Federal Government in calling for the resignation of Justice Onnoghen is highly hypocritical, especially coming from a government renowned for overlooking allegations of corruption against cabinet members.
“This only goes to confirm the comment made by Senator Shehu Sani that the Presidency fights corruption using insecticides when it comes to the opposition, but apply deodorant when it comes to members of his cabinet.â€
Egbeola noted that the APC-led government, “with an unacceptable reputation of flagrant disregard for the rule of law, should desist from arm twisting relevant agencies within its control.â€
According to him, the Presidency should allow the wheel of justice to move smoothly without interference, “rather than the current desperation that is beginning to suggest to Nigerians a conspiracy to get rid of Justice Onnoghen by all means.
“While time is irrelevant in the fight against corruption, the verdict of whether he is guilty or not is exclusively the prerogative of a competent court of law and the Young Progressives Party is calling on the Federal Government to first allow the internal disciplinary processes of the National Judicial Council, NJC, which is a body saddled with the responsibility of taking disciplinary actions against erring judicial officers, to be completely exhausted.â€
Source:
www.vanguardngr.com/2019/01/ypp-accuses-fg-of-hypocrisy-over-onnoghen/
