Abuja Judge Who Issued Criminal Summons Against Soludo Lands in Big Trouble As CJN Gives Tough Order
- The judge of the upper area court in Abuja recently issued direct criminal summons against Charles Soludo
- Nigeria's chief justice, Tanko Muhammad, is not happy about this and has asked that the decision be probed by the JSC
- It was learnt that the issues of "perjury, corruption and false assets declaration" complained against Soludo were outside the jurisdiction of the upper area court
Abuja - The Judicial Service Committee (JSC) of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) has been directed to take disciplinary action against a judge of the upper area court in Abuja after it issued a direct criminal summons against Charles Soludo.
The directive came from the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Tanko Muhammad, Premium Times learnt.
Soludo is the candidate of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) in the coming November governorship election in Anambra state. He also served as governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria between May 29, 2004 – May 29, 2009.
Source: Instagram
The judge, whose name is being withheld, was said to have recently issued the summons in relation to a complaint by some individuals, accusing Soludo of alleged abuse of office and breach of code of conduct for public officers while he served as the CBN governor.
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According to top judiciary sources, who spoke to Premium Times on condition of anonymity, the CJN was embarrassed by the judge’s conduct.
It was gathered by The Nation that part of the CJN’s directive to the chairman of the JSC of the FCT, the acting Chief Judge, Justice Hussein Baba-Yusuf was to ascertain why the Upper Area Court judge assumed jurisdiction over a case of alleged violation of code of conduct for public officers, which is the responsibility of the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT).
Confirming the directive, a senior official of the FCT JSC, said:
“We were told the Upper Area Court judge had, sometime on 23 August 2021 issued a direct criminal summons against Prof. Soludo over allegations of perjury, corruption and false assets declaration which is completely outside the jurisdiction of the Upper Area Court."
Following the directive, the FCT JSC is expected to submit its report on findings to the CJN within 21 days.
Anambra guber: Soludo too elitist
Meanwhile, the African Democratic Congress (ADC) said the next Anambra governor must be a grassroots person, who has a connection with the people.
ADC campaign director-general, Dr. Harris Chuma-Odili, said Soludo and his People Democratic Party’s (PDP’s) counterpart, Val Ozuigbo, were not electable, regardless of their profiles.
He stated:
“Soludo is an intellectual and a great man, but he’s unelectable. Ask me why, Soludo is elitist in nature, you need someone who can come down to the grassroots and descend to their level."
Source: Legit.ng
