“Apologize To Katsina-Alu”, NJC Orders Salami

The National Judicial Council (NJC) has described the allegations made by Justice Isa Ayo Salami of the Court of Appeal against the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Aloysius Katsina-Alu as falsehood and misconduct of a judicial officer.
The council has therefore directed Justice Ayo Salami to tender written apologies both to the Chief Justice of Nigeria and the National Judicial Council within one week from Wednesday, 10th August, 2011.
Justice Salami had alleged that the CJN had asked him to disband the panel hearing the Sokoto Governorship appeal matter and thereby compromise the verdict.
Street Journal found out that at the end of deliberations the committee that looked into the matter, the Judicial Council concluded that “the allegation made by the president, Court of Appeal, Salami, that Katsina-Alu instructed him to direct the Sokoto Gubernatorial Appeal to dismiss the appeal by the Democratic Peoples’ Party of Nigeria is not true.”
The NJC also revealed that it found that the CJN acted in good faith and was motivated by the apparent urge to protect the administration of justice and avoid breach of the peace when he directed that the judgment in the Sokoto gubernatorial appeal be ‘put on hold’ pending the investigation of the petitions he had received on the matter.
The council therefore exonerated Mr Justice Katsina-Alu of the allegation of interference with court proceedings in the Sokoto State gubernatorial election appeal.
The council therefore warned Justice Salami “for such unethical conduct which eroded the public confidence in the integrity and impartiality of the Judiciary”. He was therefore directed to apologise in writing to both the Chief justice of Nigeria and Chairman of National Judicial Council, Katsina-Alu, and National Judicial Council within a week from the 10th day of August, 2011.”
The NJC also concluded that the Justices of the Court of Appeal who served on the Sokoto State Governorship Appeal Panel namely; Musa Dattijo Mohammad, Paul A. Galinje, John Inyang Okoro, Mas’oud Oredola and Regina O. Nwodo, had no issue to answer.
Incidentally, Justice Salami too was given a clean bill of health by the Council as it said he and other justices who served on the Ekiti and Osun States Gubernatorial Election Petition Appeal Tribunal namely; Clara Bata Ogunbiyi, O. Ariwoola, Chiman Centus Nweze and Adamu Jauro have no ‘issue’ to answer as it found that the call logs relied upon by the petitioners lacked authenticity and evidential value and, therefore, no sufficient evidence to establish unethical communication between them.