A United Nations (UN) top official has described the suspension of Nigeria's Chief Justice Walter Onnoghen by President Buhari last month as a breach of international human rights standards and independence of the judiciary and the separation of powers.
“International human rights standards provide that judges may be dismissed only on serious grounds of misconduct or incompetence,” said Diego Garcia-Sayan, the U.N. special rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers.
“Any decision to suspend or remove a judge from office should be fair and should be taken by an independent authority such as a judicial council or a court,” he said in a statement.
Garcia-Sayan, who is mandated by the U.N. Human Rights Council to investigate legal and judicial independence, said dismissing judges without following legal procedures or offering a chance to contest the decision was incompatible with the independence of the judiciary.
Garcia-Sayan, who is mandated by the U.N. Human Rights Council to investigate legal and judicial independence, said dismissing judges without following legal procedures or offering a chance to contest the decision was incompatible with the independence of the judiciary.
He also accused the government of subjecting some of the judges and the defence lawyers involved in Onnoghen’s case to serious threats, pressures and interference.
President Buhari suspended Justice Walter Onnoghen on Jan. 25 following an order by the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) and replaced him with Ibrahim Tanko Mohammad.
Many opposition persons have condemned President Buhari over his action, saying the time and motive were suspects.
Nigeria holds Presidential election this Saturday while the president is seeking a second term in office, his main challenger, Atiku Abubakar of the People's Democratic Party (PDP) closing up on major poll to determine who wins the election.
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