The Spokesperson Peoples Democratic Party Presidential Campaign Management Committee, Senator Dino Melaye, has called on the Chief Justice of there Federation, Justice Olukayode Ariwoola, to resign from office.
Melaye disclosed this in a press statement while reacting to the remarks credited to Ariwoola, where the latter reportedly hailed the Governor of Oyo State, Seyi Makinde, for being a member of the PDP G5 governors.
While calling for the resignation of the CJN, Melaye stated that “the Chief Justice of Nigeria , Hon Justice Olukayode Ariwoola, who has just demonstrated his familiarity with the workings of G5 Governors has by seeking to recruit members into that group turned himself into a suspect, who only can not be trusted with fair dispensation of justice in Nigeria, but a Chief Judicial Officer who has become tainted and unfit to superintend over the administration of Justice in Nigeria.”
He also stated that the recent move by the CJN is against the provisions of the Code of Conduct for Judicial Officers, section 5.
The press statement partly reads,
Flowing from the above, the fisrt thing that jumps out in 5(d) is the indiscretion of Justice Olukayode Ariwoola to fail to adhere to political silence. Rather he chose to be a recruiting agent for a distinct and unmistakable political group.
“Furthermore, the Chief Justice of Nigeria has by his pronouncement desecrated the dignity of the Judiciary, demonstrated partiality, eroded public confidence, exposed the Judiciary to political attacks and acted in a manner that is inconsistent with the character, colour and calling of his exalted office. In fact he broke all the rules in this section. This represents a sad irony. It is a case of the gatekeeper carting away the goods in his custody.
“We are worried by this development, as this has confirmed the suspicion in certain circles that the Judiciary has compromised its independence and is now dependent on certain interests, particularly in the Executive Branch. One can imagine a scenario in which the group the Chief Justice of Nigeria has patronised so openly appears before him with another party in a dispute. Where he presides bias can not be ruled out and where he does not preside his influence on other Judges can not be discounted.
“With the scandalous conduct of the Chief Justice of Nigeria, it has become expedient and a matter of honour that he resigns from the exalted office that he has demonstrably abused. If he chooses to prolong his stay in office, to continue to serve the interest of his political friends, he may choose to recuse himself as Chairman of the National Judicial Council, turn himself in as a suspect, proceed on leave and allow for a thorough evaluation of his conduct in line with the provisions of Section 5 of the Code of Conduct for Judicial Officers.
“Hon Justice Olukayode Ariwoola has a duty to save the Judiciary, himself and Nigeria’s democracy.”
