The House of Representatives on Tuesday passed a bill for second reading, seeking to amend the Constitution to allow the Nigerian Bar Association to receive petitions against corrupt judicial officers and consider the defence of the petitioned officer.
Titled, “A Bill for an Act to provide for the presumed resignation from Office of the Chief Justice of Nigeria, justices and judges of certain courts in Nigeria and for related matters,” the proposed law was sponsored by the lawmaker representing Ogbaru Federal Constituency, Anambra State, Afam Ogene.
The bill, which was one of the 40 passed for a second reading during plenary on Tuesday, seeks to alter the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria by introducing provisions for the removal of corrupt justices and judges in the judiciary from their respective offices.
The bill proposes a new subsection 6 to each of sections 231, 238, 250, 256, and 271 of the 1999 Constitution to provide for the removal from office of any corrupt Chief Justice of Nigeria, President and Justices of the Court of Appeal, Chief Judge and Judges of the Federal High Court, Chief Judge and Judges of the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, and Chief Judge and Judges of the High Court of a State.
“The bill confers powers on the Nigerian Bar Association to receive petitions against any erring judicial officer, consider the defence of the petitioned Officer, and if not satisfied, conduct a confidence vote over him,” a draft of the proposed law, read in part.
According to the draft, “If two-thirds of the members of the NBA in its Annual General Meeting or Conference pass a vote of no confidence on the petitioned officer, then his continuation in office becomes effectively terminated.
“This termination of office implies that the judicial officer is presumed in the eyes of the law to have resigned from service.”
Ogene, a member of the Labour Party told our correspondent, “The essence of the bill is to provide an alternative constitutional mechanism for disciplining erring and corrupt judicial officers away from the mundane role of the National Judicial Council, which is no longer potent in curbing the rot in our court and justice system.”
