Together, the Coalition of National Civil Society Organisations (CNCSOs) and the Conference of Nigeria Political Parties (CNPP) have expressed concern about what they see as a risky attempt by Hon. Justice Maurice Ikpambese, the Chief Judge of Benue State, to influence the Local Government Election Petition Appeals Tribunal for political ends.
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The groups claimed that Justice Ikpambese planned to remove Justice Maimuna Ikwulono from the Appeals Tribunal for upholding her judicial independence in a strongly worded statement signed by Alhaji Ali Abacha, National Secretary of CNCSOs, and Comrade James Ezema, Deputy National Publicity Secretary of the CNPP.
Since then, Justice Mohammed has been selected to take her position, which calls into question the tribunal’s credibility. Citing reliable allegations, the CNPP and CNCSOs connected the Chief Judge’s activities to an ongoing political dispute with Governor Rev. Fr. Hyacinth Alia and a purported partnership with Dr. George Akume, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation.
They claim that in exchange for exploiting his position to undermine the governor’s political base by ousting elected local government chairmen who opposed Akume’s interests, Justice Ikpambese, who is scheduled to retire next year, has been given the Senate ticket for Benue North-East (Zone A). They pointed out that four of the seven chairmen in Zone A have been removed thus far as a result of tribunal rulings, whereas no chairmen in Zone B have been removed, demonstrating blatant political scheming.
The organisations recalled that the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) and the National Judicial Council (NJC), both of which emphasised rigorous adherence to due process, intervened to halt a prior attempt by the Benue State House of Assembly to remove Justice Ikpambese through a petition. The video evidence that CNPP and CNCSOs cited at a political event, when Justice Ikpambese allegedly boasted in Tiv language about his aim to thwart Governor Alia by influencing tribunal outcomes through selective selections, was particularly concerning.
The groups also claimed that the Chief Judge quickly formed an emergency panel during the last month of the tribunal, which resulted in contentious decisions that removed elected officials and replaced them with candidates who hadn’t even run for office. They characterise this as a “calculated judicial ambush” that went against the wishes of the Benue voters. Political tensions in the state have reportedly increased as a result of these measures, which have caused the Benue State Government to lose control of nine of twenty-three local governments.
The expulsion of Justice Maimuna Ikwulono based on an uninvestigated petition was strongly denounced by the CNPP and CNCSOs, who maintained that the NJC alone possesses the constitutional power to reprimand judicial personnel. They cautioned that democracy and judicial independence are seriously threatened by unilateral meddling in judicial affairs.
The organisations gave Justice Ikpambese a severe warning while applauding the Chief Justice of Nigeria and NJC Chairman for her continuous efforts to protect judicial integrity across the country: “If the Chief Judge does not immediately discontinue his self-confessed plans to use the Local Government Tribunal to frustrate the Governor and the electorate of Benue State by manipulating tribunal outcomes through selective appointments, the CNPP and CNCSOs will be left with no option but to mobilise mass protests to occupy the National Judicial Council (NJC) headquarters until he is removed from office.”
They came to the conclusion that political expediency should never come at the expense of our judiciary’s credibility. We call for prompt remedial measures to preserve Benue State’s democratic institutions and the integrity of the legal system.”
