Richard Akinnola II, a journalist, lawyer, human rights activist and philanthropist, in this interview with MAYOWA SAMUEL, bares his mind on the on-going confusion in the judicial system and other issues, particularly, security challenges which Nigeria is contending with.
The Judiciary is in the eye of the storm over controversial ex-parte orders by some Judges. What’s the likely implication of this particular judicial confusion?
These people are making a mockery of the judiciary. I can understand the desperation of politicians but judges allowing themselves to be used is uncalled for. In the first place, why removing a party chairman through ex-parte order? Couldn’t they have taken judicial notice of the previous orders by another court? So, why can’t they take judicial notice of the previous order by another court and tell them to go back to that one instead of bringing some funny ex-parte order, its most unfortunate. Why can’t they put him on notice? Thank God the CJN has summoned the chief judges of the respective states and the NBA president has also issued a very strong worded statement against this type of terrible conduct. Ex-parte is for very urgent issues. So, what’s so urgent about the removal of a political party chairman that you cannot ask the party to put the other party on notice? All these are just arrangee kind of justice which further devalues the public confidence in the judiciary. These are some of the issues that happened in June 12 when they had multiple court orders like ‘release the results, don’t release the results’ and all manner of court orders. Abacha used that when he was removing Chief Earnest Shonekan. Abacha used that opportunity to say the judiciary was part of the problem. Fortunately, the court of Appeal, Awka made a very profound statement when he was ruling in one of the cases in Anambra pre-election matters when he deprecated in no uncertain terms all these orders from different jurisdictions. Don’t forget again that in 2004, after Governor Ngige’s abduction, it was the same judiciary that was used when one of the anti-Ngige elements went to procure a judgement at the Enugu high court when the issue was in Anambra state, eventually, the order was put aside but the damage had been done and eventually, the NJC stepped into the matter and the judge was retired. So, I hope the NJC will also wield its big stick against all these judges giving all these kinds of mysterious ex-parte orders. This same thing happened during the pre-election period in Edo state governorship election a year ago, where one interested party in Port Harcourt and another went to Kano to get an order, all kinds of silly orders. People just go to get orders that suit them which are very questionable in the way they were procured. It’s a major disservice to the judiciary and I hope the NJC will take strong, stern actions against the judges involved.
What’s your take on the recent bandits’ attack of the Nigeria Defense Academy? How would you interpret the dastardly act?
If that kind of facility can be vulnerable to attacks by bandits, it portends danger to the country’s whole infrastructure. These characters can now infiltrate our barracks, even the well-fortified areas and the NDA is supposed to be a well-fortified area. To kidnap and murder officers with so much ease portends danger for our internal security. It’s just like terrorists infiltrating Pentagon. Why it’s so difficult for government to tame terrorists, I don’t understand. It’s just so embarrassing.
Should we then tag them as terrorists, rather than bandits?
Clear and simple, there are no two ways about it. They are terrorists, not bandits. You can’t call them bandits because these same people shut down a Nigerian Airforce plane. And you call them bandits? These same people infiltrated an elite facility like the NDA and you call them bandits? I can’t understand.
“Thank God the CJN has summoned the chief judges of the respective states and the NBA president has also issued a very strong worded statement against this type of terrible conduct. Ex-parte is for very urgent issues”
How would you describe government’s lukewarmness towards these terrorists?
I think government is overwhelmed and it boils down to leadership because if it is easier to get to the South East and deal with ESN and IPOB, why is it so difficult to deal with the ones in the North? My challenge about the President is that it is not a Fulani thing, people have been unduly criminalising every Fulani. There are Fulani Christians anyway, not all Fulanis are criminals, but these herders who are being brought up by the Miyetti Allah, the question is: is this the first time we will be having a Fulani president? Shagari was Fulani, Yar’Adua was Fulani, where was Miyetti Allah during those periods?
Buhari’s actions have shown so much of support for all these herders, maybe because he is a Fulani man. It’s a matter of lack of political will in dealing with this issue. If it means changing service chiefs on regular or quarterly basis, so be it. You need to give them target which must be met. The service chiefs are working under serious pressure but most of these things have to do with intelligence gathering, it goes beyond bravado. Once you can take care of the issue of intelligence, most of these issues will be handled. I think that’s the critical area. Yes, they hold their regular security council meetings where they brief the president on what he wants to hear but in practical terms, we are not seeing their input apart from the surrender of some of these Boko Haram characters, which is good. You can see the way these kidnappers and terrorists are going about with so much impunity, maiming people as well as other criminal elements in the South. I have once proposed that all these policemen who are extorting money here and there on the highway, they should be sent to those places as punitive measures, go and face fire. It’s because you are too lax, you don’t have much work to do, that’s why you keep harassing people, following tax force people to harass motorists and so on the highways, but in the bushes, they are not there. So, it’s a matter of getting things right by the government and by the I.G, Service Chiefs and the political will of the President to handle these people.
Government has been appealing to victims’ families to accept back repentant terrorists rather than punishing them. Could there be any justification for all this?
I can’t really understand because psychologically, I just imagine those whose children are still in captivity of these Boko Haram people like the Chibok girls and co and you now say they should welcome them with open arms, I can’t get it. It would be devastating to parents whose children are still in captivity of these Boko Haram people. So, I don’t subscribe to that.
Former Navy Commodore, Kunle Olawunmi recently hinted that the Nigerian government knows the people behind the Boko Haram bedeviling the country. What are your thoughts on the Commodore’s revelations?
The man was just saying what has been in the public domain. At least, we have a minister who has an antecedent of fraternising with Al-Qaida. The man is still in government, a serving minister in a very important ministry. Even though when the issue became very hot in the public domain, those who tried to defend him, said that he was younger at that time. I wonder how that obliterates whatever potential harm that it poses to the society.
What do you make of Rotimi Amaechi’s confession that those who are stealing public funds in this present administration are doing so quietly?
It’s obvious and he is an insider, for him to have said that. So, the difference between now and that of Jonathan was that Jonathan’s people were analogue but now, these people now are digital. That’s why it looked more profound during Jonathan’s administration.
The president recently marked the grazing routes across parts of the country. What in your opinion is the legal implication of this?
It is illegal and unconstitutional because the lands belong to the state governors by virtue of the land use act. So, you can’t just come and take over land and say you are doing grazing reserve. That’s why some state governors are already passing the anti-open grazing law. So, what the government is doing is unconstitutional and an act of illegality by saying you want to impose grazing routes when by law, by virtue of the land use act, the land belongs to the state governors. Thank God the water resources bill has died at infancy. They are just causing unnecessary conflicts. How can you say the water at Bar Beach belongs to Abuja? It doesn’t make sense.
You celebrated your birthday recently, how will you describe the memorable occasion?
Thank God for life. This could be maybe because of our cultural mentality that it’s only when someone dies that people will talk about him but when he is alive, people take him for granted but I don’t take life for granted. Every day one is alive is a party to me as far as I am concerned. This one was a bit loud but every year, I always do something. If I’m not launching a book, I’m empowering widows and so on. This year’s own was a lecture, so I always find time to do one particular function or the other.
