The National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Prince Uche Secondus on Sunday said that the fear of insecurity and intimidation of judges raised by the Nigeria Bar Association (NBA), has vindicated the PDP’s position that the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), was using devious means to obstruct justice from coming out from the nation’s courts.
This was contained in a statement made available to newsmen in Abuja by his Special Adviser, (Media), Mr Ike Abonyi.
Recall that the NBA President Paul Usoro SAN had in a speech on Thursday and which was unanimously adopted by the National Executive Committee of the Association alerted the nation that “the level of insecurity in the country and the attack on the independence of the judiciary and the legal profession constituted a threat to the rule of law and by extension the country’s democracy.”
The NBA boss declared that the climate of fear instilled by the Federal Government undermined the independence of the judiciary and the ability of judges to act confidently without fear or favour in dispensing justice as they are threatened, intimidated and blackmailed by mostly the executive arm of government and their agencies at federal and state levels.
However, Secondus pointed out that the NBA alarm merely confirmed the position of PDP that APC administration was shrinking the doctrine of separation of power to enable a full-blown dictatorship to blossom.
He noted that judges and justices by their calling could not speak out publicly even if they were under pains except through the bar as had been eloquently and timely done by the NBA and said that all democratic watchers should note this concerns.
Secondus pointed out that the PDP had continuously raised alarm at the gradual erosion of the doctrines of separation of power by the APC administration as the nation watches helplessly as the executive continues to muzzle the other arms of government including even the press.
