A legal practitioner, Taiwo Ojumu, has faulted former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s recent criticism of the Nigerian judiciary, insisting that Obasanjo himself had no moral right to make such remarks given how his administration allegedly undermined the courts during his tenure from 1999 to 2007.
In an interview with News Central TV, Ojumu acknowledged that, like every other institution, the judiciary has its share of bad eggs, but he maintained that many upright judges still deliver uncompromised justice.
He stressed that while there is some validity in Obasanjo’s concerns, the former president’s record in office showed instances where court decisions unfavorable to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) were disregarded.
According to him, Obasanjo’s actions during his eight-year rule weakened the judiciary, making his present criticism questionable.
He asserted that it would be wrong to tag the entire judiciary as corrupt because, just like other institutions, the misconduct of a few individuals should not overshadow the integrity of many others who remain committed to justice.
In his words, “We still know very quite upright justice and judges that will not compromise and that will not provide justice.”
“Now, with that said, with all due respect to Baba Obasanjo, who is someone I respect a lot as a Yoruba man, as a cultural person, I feel that it’s high time Baba took some break from making some statements.”
“When I say statements, I mean, Baba, we remember, just like yesterday, when Baba Obasanjo was president of the country during the Fourth Republic from 1999 to 2007, we knew how his government undermined the judiciary. We knew the things that happened.
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