Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Nyesom Wike, has called on the Body of Benchers to take disciplinary action against Professor Chidi Odinkalu, accusing him of degrading the legal profession through public criticism.
Wike made the call during a meeting with the Body of Benchers, led by Chief Adegboyega Awomolo, SAN, where he emphasised the need for the Nigerian Bar Association, NBA, to maintain discipline and protect judicial integrity.
He said: “We have instilled so much fear in our judges and justices that they can’t freely associate. If a judge is going to a mosque or church and sees someone they know, they hesitate to interact because they fear being accused. If they shake hands with someone, people will allege bribery, and a petition will be written claiming the judge was seen shaking someone’s hand,” he continued, indirectly referencing Odinkalu’s public critiques.
“On Saturday, I went to the University of Calabar. The next thing I saw in the papers was a report claiming that a justice escorted me. And someone will sit down and read such a report.
“Once you see that, you should be able to say, ‘invite him’. You don’t just write baseless accusations, if you don’t discipline people.
“We cannot continue to allow our profession to be undermined. We cannot continue this way. If you don’t discipline someone, nobody will listen. Okay, can you please invite him? Did you write this…yes or no? We cannot allow the disparagement of our judges and justices. It’s not done anywhere. I think we have a lot of work to do but, first of all, we must instill discipline in our lawyers. Enough is enough.”
Responding to Wike’s call for his punishment, Prof. Odinkalu, through his twitter handle, dismissed the call for sanction, saying that at the appropriate time, Wike’s story will be told.
