The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has appealed to the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Walter Onnoghen to defend and protect the judiciary and not allow it to be part of the unconstitutional implementation of Executive Order 6 (EO6)
The Party’s appeal was made through a statement issued by its National Publicity Secretary Kola Ologbondiyan in Abuja on Monday.
According to him, Executive Order 6, as well as the travel ban on citizens, were fabricated to directly impede the judicial processes and deprive accused persons of resources, under the guise of speedy trial.
Ologbondiyan noted that Order 6 and the travel ban were attempts by the President to suspend sections 6 (6)(b), 36 (5), (6)(d) and 37 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended).
He further said that such actions of the government “have left no one in doubt that the nation was fast sliding into fascism.”
“Section 6 (6)(b) provides that judicial powers of the court shall ‘extend to all matters between persons, or between government or authority and to any person in Nigeria, and to all actions and proceedings relating thereto, for the determination of any question as to the civil rights and obligations of that person.
“Section 36 (6) (d) provides that, “every person who is charged with a criminal offence shall be entitled to be given adequate time and facilities for the preparation of his defence.
“Moreover, Section 36 (5) provides that, “every person who is charged with a criminal offence shall be presumed to be innocent until he is proven guilty.”
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“Furthermore, Section 37 stipulates that ‘the privacy of citizens, their homes, correspondence, telephone conversation and telegraphic communications is hereby guaranteed and protected,” he explained in the statement.
The PDP spokesman maintained that the travel ban, trailing of citizens and attempt to regulate the processes of the court was an attempt to short-circuit the constitutional powers of the judiciary.
He accused the Presidency of arrogating the powers of the investigator, prosecutor and the judge to himself in determination of trumped-up charges against innocent Nigerians.
Ologbondiyan said that the PDP rejected in its entirety “the attempt to return our country to pre-military dictatorship.
“We therefore urge the Judiciary as the last hope of the common man to prevent an attempt to turn the judiciary into an instrument of oppression against Nigerians.”
