Former Governor of Ekiti State has requested the Attorney General of
the Federation (AGF), Mr. Mohammed Adoke (SAN) to commence criminal
prosecution of the suspended President of the Court of Appeal (PCA),
Justice Isa Ayo Salami for the offence of Perjury.
Oni, who was one of the key figures that exposed the alleged underhand
dealings by the suspended Justice Salami on the Ekiti and Osun
Elections Appeal cases gave the AGF 72 hours ultimatum to commence the
trial.
Media Aide to the former governor, Mr. Lere Olayinka, who made this
known in a statement issued in Ado-Ekiti today said; in a letter to
the Attorney General dated January 19, 2012, Oni stated that
“following the conclusion of the Justice Umaru Abdullahi Panel, which
found that Justice Salami lied on oath, the AGF should exercise his
constitutional duty to commence prosecution of the suspended PCA
forthwith.”
Section (117) of the Criminal Code Act states that; “Any person who,
in any judicial
proceeding, or for the purpose of instituting any judicial proceeding,
knowingly gives false
testimony touching any matter which is material to any question then
depending in that
proceeding, or intended to be raised in that proceeding, is guilty of
an offence, which is called
perjury. Section (118) prescribes fourteen years imprisonment as punishment for
perjury.
Oni’s letter stated inter alia; ”Hon minister will kindly recall that
the Justice Umaru Abdullahi panel investigated the allegations by
Justice Ayo Salami contained in his affidavit sworn to before the
court to the effect that the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN) then
(Justice Aloysius Katsina-Alu) invited him to a meeting and asked him
to interfere in the Tribunal in respect of the Governorship case of
Sokoto State then before the Court of Appeal Panel.
“This is contained among others in Para graph4( v) of the sworn
affidavit which stated ‘the Honourable Chief Justice of Nigeria
actually instructed me to direct the panel of justices hearing the
Sokoto state gubernatorial Appeal Panel to dismiss the Appeal which I
told him I could not do.’
“Based on evidence before the panel by the former CJN and Hon Justice
Dahiru Mustapha, the current Chief Justice of Nigeria, who was present
during the said meeting between the then CJN and the Suspended PCA,
the panel found that the allegations of interference by the CJN was
not true ,contrary to the sworn affidavit deposed to by the President
of the Court of Appeal, Justice Ayo Salami on 31/3/11.
“The Panel stated on page 96 ‘From all the circumstances there is
available evidence that the CJN did not give instructions to the PCA
to direct the panel to dismiss the appeal’’…. ‘’ the Panel finds that
the allegation that the CJN had taken over the running of the Court of
Appeal in an unprecedented manner as unfounded.’
“It is trite therefore that having lied on oath, a crime of perjury
has been committed by Justice Salami, one of the persons who sits at
the top echelon of the bench, a situation which has no doubt put the
judiciary in public odium.
“It is the duty of the Attorney General to initiate prosecution of
anyone who has committed a criminal offence in our country or give a
fiat for such prosecution, and it is a well known legal maxim that
all persons are equal before the law.
“It is in pursuing our patriotic duty to the nation that I wish to
request the Hon Attorney General to initiate the prosecution of
Justice Salami for the offence of Perjury within a reasonable time
not later than 72 hours of the receipt of this petition or course a
fiat to be given to our lawyers for this prosecution.”
It would be recalled that sometimes in October, 2011 a similar letter
was written to the AGF by lawyers of the Peoples Democratic Party
(PDP) in Ekiti and Osun states, but the letter has not been acted
upon.
This notwithstanding, moves are allegedly being made to return Salami
to his position based on pressures allegedly being mounted on the
Presidency and the CJN, Justice Dahiru Musdapher by some opposition
party chieftains working in concert with some leading figures in the
Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) in what has been termed ”political
solution.”
