The Senate has condemned the arrest and detention of 7 judges by the Department of State Security (DSS) following a motion moved by Senator Joshua Lidani (PDP:Gombe) at its plenary on Tuesday, 11th October 2016. It will be recalled that 7 judges including Justices Inyang Okoro and Sylvester Ngwuta of the Supreme Court were allegedly arrested in their homes at the early hours of Friday 7th and Saturday 8th October, 2016 on the grounds of corruption, abuse of office and other acts of misconduct. Although the judges have now been granted administrative bail on self recognizance, the Senate Committee on Judiciary, Human Rights and Legal Matters has been mandated to review all existing laws pertaining to the establishment of security agencies to ensure their tenets are in line with democratic principles.
Elucidating on the motion, Sen. Lidani was of the view that the DSS had deviated and neglected its primary duty of prevention and detection of crimes against internal security as provided by section 2 (3) of the National Securities Agency Act 2010. He also mentioned that it was the responsibility of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC) and the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) to prosecute matters of corruption. In addition, he expressed deep concerns that the unorthodox use of the DSS may prove counterproductive and erode public confidence in the judiciary.
Contributing to the motion, Sen. Dino Melaye (APC:Kogi) acknowledged that corruption was prevalent in the Judiciary. However, he described the action of the DSS as a misnomer and an abuse of its mandate. Furthermore, Sen. Godswill Akpabio (PDP:Akwa Ibom) stressed the importance of sustaining a positive image of Nigeria in the international community and cautioned against a negative image of the Judiciary that is often described as the “last hope of the common man”. However, his suggestion of an invitation of Mr Lawal Musa Daura, Director General of the DSS was declined by the Senate who gave its aforementioned Committee four weeks to report on the matter.
In a related development, the Senate has also been forwarded President Buhari’s nominations of Hon. Justice Sidi Dauda Bage (Nasarawa) and Hon. Justice Paul Adamu Galinge (Taraba) for confirmation as Justices of the Supreme Court of Nigeria.
