NJC Asks Jonathan to Re-instate Salami

11 May 2012

Justice Isa Ayo Salami

By Tobi Soniyi

Nine months after he was suspended as the President of the Court of Appeal, Justice Isa Ayo Salami got a reprieve Thursday as the National Judiciary Council (NJC) wrote to President Goodluck Jonathan to reinstate him.

Rising from a two-day meeting, the council unanimously agreed that a letter be written to the president to reinstate Salami.

Although, no official of the NJC confirmed the development, a council member who confided in THISDAY said that the imbroglio created by the suspension of Salami had been finally laid to rest.

He confirmed that a decision had been taken that he be reinstated and that a letter should be written to the president to re-instate him.
The details of the decision to re-instate him, however, remain scanty.

The NJC had on August 18, 2011 suspended Salami and recommended to the president to retire him.

He had rejected his promotion to the Supreme Court, accusing the then Chief Justice of Nigeria, Jutsice Aloysius Katsina-Alu, of trying to ease him out because he (Salami) refused to pervert the course of justice in the Sokoto governorship election petition as requested by Katsina-Alu.

After receiving the recommendation, Jonathan approved the suspension, explaining that there was a need to avoid a vacuum.
Justice Dalhatu Adamu was appointed immediately to take over being the most senior justice of the court.

As at press time, the suit Salami filed challenging his suspension was still pending at the Court of Appeal following a reference to that court by the high court.

The appeal court was to determine the issue of whether the case filed by Salami was an employment dispute or not.

NJC had recommended Salami for suspension because he refused to apologise to the council and Katsina-Alu after a panel of the council found him to have lied against the CJN.

The council, in a statement signed by the council’s Director of Administration, Mr. E.I. Odukwu, directed Salami to hand over to the next most senior justice of the Appeal Court.
The statement read: “Pursuant to the powers conferred on the National Judicial Council in the Constitution of the Nigeria, 1999 as amended, Hon. Justice Isa Ayo Salami, OFR, President of the Court of Appeal has been suspended from office with effect from today 18th August, 2011.

“The decision was reached at the 7th Emergency Meeting of the Council held on 18th August, 2011.

“The decision was reached at the National Judicial Council further directs that Hon. Justice Salami should hand over the affairs of the Court of Appeal to the next most senior justice of the court.”

The council did not make any reference to the suit filed by Salami at the Federal High Court in Abuja wherein he was challenging the report of the Justice Umaru Abduallahi panel which investigated him and Katsina-Alu for alleged misconduct.

A sub-committee of the NJC, headed by the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, Justice Ibrahim Auta, had earlier recommended that Salami should tender a written apology to both Katsina-Alu and the council.

The Auta’s committee also recommended that Salami be cautioned. A letter of caution was consequently sent to him.
In arriving at its decision, the council, based on the Auta panel’s recommendation, found Salami in breach of Rule 1(1) of the Code of Conduct for Judicial Officers.  The Rule provides: Rule 1 “A Judicial Officer should avoid impropriety and the appearance of impropriety in all his activities. (1) A Judicial Officer should respect and comply with the laws of the land and should conduct himself at all times in a manner that promotes public confidence in the integrity and impartiality of the judiciary.”

Salami refused and headed for the court. In the suit, Salami asked the Federal High Court in Abuja to set aside the proceeding and findings of the investigation panel headed by Justice Umaru Abdullahi and the recommendation of the panel headed by Justice Auta.

He asked the court to declare that the setting up of the NJC Investigation Committee and its composition were in gross violation of the principles of natural justice, and his constitutionally guaranteed right to fair hearing under Section 36 of the Constitution of  the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended) and was therefore unconstitutional, null and void.

He listed as defendants the following: the National judicial Council; Hon. Justice Dahiru Musdapher; Hon. Justice Aloysius Katsina-Alu; Hon. Justice Umaru Abdullahi; Hon. Justice Emmanuel Ayoola; Hon. Justice Dominic Edozie; Hon. Justice Michael Akpiroroh; Mrs. Rakia Sarki Ibrahim; Hon. Justice Ibrahim Ndahi Auta; Hon. Justice Kate Abiri; and Hon. Justice Peter Umeadi.

Before he was suspended, he was given one week within which he must tender an apology to both the council and Katsina-Alu over his allegation, on oath, that the CJN attempted to manipulate the course of justice in the Sokoto gubernatorial election dispute The council said it found Salami’s allegation as a misconduct because it violated Rule1(1) of the Code of Conduct for Judicial Officers.

It also directed Salami to tender a separate apology to the NJC for the harm occasioned the integrity of the judiciary vide the allegation.

The apology, the council said, must be done in writing. In fact, the NJC said the allegation by Justice Salami which was discovered to be untrue amounted to a "misconduct contrary to Rule 1(1) of the Code of Conduct for Judicial Officer of the Federal Republic of Nigeria".

Both Justice Salami and other justices of the Court of Appeal that sat on the Osun and Ekiti gubernatorial disputes were also absolved of any misconduct in the handling of the cases.

The call logs presented by the two sacked governors to establish allegation of professional misconduct against Justice Salami were also dismissed as lacking in authenticity and evidential value.

SOURCE: ThisDay, 11 May 2012. http://www.thisdaylive.com/