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Abati: Jonathan may not appoint ‘outsider’ as CJN
The Nation By
Joseph Jibueze Fri Aug 12,2011
DR.
Abati
President Goodluck Jonathan may not appoint a person outside the
Supreme Court as the next Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN),
Presidential spokesman Dr Reuben Abati said yesterday.
The CJN, Justice Aloysius Katsina-Alu will bow out of office on
August 28 when he clocks the mandatory retirement age of 70.
According to Abati, he will likely be succeeded by Justice
Dahiru Musdapher, the next most senior justice of the Supreme
Court.
There have been suggestions that the position should be thrown
open, allowing any qualified person to be considered as the
Constitution stipulates.
Those clamouring for a merit-based succession plan rather than
the non-competitive queuing practice say the judiciary urgently
requires a breath of fresh air, in view of the crisis of
confidence it is facing.
But Abati said those who hold such views are entitled to their
opinions.
He indicated that President Jonathan may not jettison the
standard practice of appointing the most senior justice as CJN.
Abati said: “Well, people can express their opinions, but if you
look at the books, you will see that the process of appointing
the CJN is something that is established.
“A recommendation will be made, and seniority issues are
involved.”
He spoke in Lagos after he was conferred with an honorary fellow
of the Nigerian Academy of Letters at its 13th annual
convocation and investiture ceremony of fellows.
On the President’s six-year single term proposal, Abati said
only the National Assembly, which represents the people, will
have the final say after it is subjected to a debate.
His words: “I keep correcting that. It is not tenure elongation
bill. It’s about single tenure and it’s still a proposal. There
has been a misconception and twisting of the facts. The National
Assembly is on recess. It will return in September. What the
President has said is that that proposal will go through due
process.
“For you to send an executive bill to parliament, that bill
first of all has to be considered by the executive. It will be
deliberated upon at that level and at the party level, and there
will be consultations. Afterwards, the bill will be forwarded to
the National Assembly.
“The National Assembly is a body representing the Nigerian
people. Whatever comes out of the bill will be a decision of the
Nigerian people. But people make it seem as if President
Jonathan is in a position to impose his views on Nigerians. No;
there is no such thing.
“Nigerian people are the ones to decide what they want to do
with the Constitution and future of Nigeria. All of us are
stakeholders and every one of us is free to make a proposal.”
Abati dismissed criticisms that Jonathan should focus on
governance and pressing issues that affect people’s lives
instead of tenure. He said the proposal does not mean the
President has lost focus on the tasks before him.
“When people say tenure issue is not pressing at this moment,
there is some kind of selective forgetfulness. People make it
seem as if it is the only thing that government is doing. The
President is a leader of a team, and members of that team are
working.
“The ministers are in place, and these are men and women who are
supposed to execute the programmes of government. So, it will be
wrong to say that the President is fixated on one issue.”
Abati, a 1985 First Class Theatre Arts graduate of the
University of Calabar, said it was a privilege to be considered
for the honour by the academy. He joins the likes of Chief Emeka
Anyaoku, Gamaliel Onosode, Gabriel Okara and Victor Uwaifo as
honorary fellows.
Yoruba poet and ace media producer Alagba Adebayo Faleti was
also invested with an honorary fellow. Those invested with
regular fellows were Prof Bamidele Badejo, Conrad Brann,
Agwonorobo Eruvbetine, Abiola Odejide and Ayodele Olukoju.
Delivering the convocation lecture entitled: “Nigeria and the
curse of elections,” professor emeritus and former ambassador,
Jide Osunkotun, said history has shown that it is possible to
defeat ruling party in an election.
However, for that the happen in Nigeria of today, the opposition
must unite against the ruling party, he warned.
“As long as the opposition remain divided, the ruling Peoples
Democratic Party (PDP) will remain in power even if it continues
to perform poorly. And the nation will gradually inch towards a
one-party state,” he said.
He praised the Prof Attahiru Jega-led Independent National
Electoral Commission (INEC) for conducting what was widely
adjudged as generally fair, and described former chairman Prof
Maurice Iwu as a “despicable character” for conducting some of
the worst elections in Nigeria’s history.
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