In the aftermath of President Buhari’s controversial suspension of Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Walter Onnognhen and subsequent swearing in of an Acting Chief Justice in person of Justice Tanko Mohammed, Civil Society Organizations, Pro-Democracy Groups and Professional Associations in their numbers, took to the streets of Abuja the nation\s capital on Monday to protest the action with virtually all of them demanding a reversal of the President’s action.
Amongst the groups present were the #OccupyNigeria Group who have over the years been at the forefront of agitations for good, transparent and responsible governance.
Coordinator of the group Comrade Idris Usman whist fielding questions from newsmen at the Unity Fountain venue of the peaceful demonstration, was emphatic in his condemnation of the actions of President Muhammadu Buhari. According to Comrade Usman ” President Buhari has violated the strongest bond of our unity which is the constitution. Nobody is saying that he shouldn’t fight corruption but the processes enshrined in the constitution must be adhered to. It’s about due process. By his (Buhari’s) actions, our constitution has more or less been suspended and by extension even his right to function as President. We will not relent until we get a positive response from the government on this matter and i am using this forum to also call on all our leaders at all levels to do the needful by ensuring that this unwarranted and unilateral decision taken by President Buhari is reversed for the sake of our nascent democracy”.
Speaking further Usman called on all well meaning Nigerians to come out in their numbers to make their voices heard in the bid to ensure that the controversial decision taken on the CJN issue is reversed and resolved. He also informed the press that the group would be embarking on yet another peaceful demonstration at the gates of the Presidential Villa on Tuesday January 29, 2019.
Below is a press statement issued by the group.
PRESS STATEMENT
The Nigerian constitution operates on two fundamental principles, namely: the rule of law and separation of powers among three (independent and complementary) arms of government. The president has spent the last three years of his reign brazenly undermining the other two arms of government in order to subdue them and make them subservient to his clueless rulership and dictatorial instincts.
While governance had been relegated to the background, under the pretense of a dubious fight against corruption, Nigerians have been the ultimate recipients of his menu of hardship and starvation, even as the economy has gone to the dogs. There are several clear violations of law and morality by the president and his cabal, all without consequence or positive steps on the part of the presidency.
Nowhere in the constitution is the President of the Republic empowered to remove/suspend the head of another arm of Government, that is coequal with the executive which he heads, such an act could only have been taken from his dictatorial playbook.
It is clear that the president is living in a very distant past, in which he could terminate legitimate governments, shut down public institutions and lockup officials without consequence. It is clear that the era of dictatorial rule is firmly behind us, having failed to deliver any meaningful progress in a combined 26years of military rule since independence. The President clearly and urgently needs a crash course on the doctrine of separation of powers in a modern state operating in the knowledge and information age.
If he proceeds with this unconstitutional and brazen violation of the Nation’s Constitution, he should be reminded that even office of the President derives its powers from the Constitution. The national Assembly should commence impeachment proceedings against this man with immediate effect because we are clearly dealing with one who wants to make himself life president. To his enablers from the north, southwest and southeast there is no succession plan that includes you in it and you still have a chance to join forces with the people who have spoken, loud and clear, that “enough is enough”
