In this piece, Vanguard Law and Human Rights, reviews the facts surrounding the arrest, trial, dismissal and reinstatement of Justice Rita Ngozi Ofili-Ajumogobia and examines the law and precedents regarding the issues in question and argues that the system in place cannot guarantee the integrity the judiciary needs to assert its legitimacy to dispense Justice.

Background

By a circular dated December 5, 2022, the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, Justice John Terhemba Tsoho announced that the National Judicial Council, NJC, has reinstated Justice Rita Ofili-Ajumogobia.

Justice Ajumogobia was dismissed from service by President Muhammadu Buhari on November 7, 2018, following a recommendation by the National Judicial Council to the effect dated October 3, 2018.

Specifically, the NJC under the leadership of former Chief Justice of Nigeria, CJN, Justice Walter Onnoghen, at its 87th Meeting which was held on October 3, 2018, had recommended the removal by dismissal from office of Hon. Justice R. N. Ofili-Ajumogobia of the Federal High Court following the findings by the Council on the allegations of misconduct contained in a petition to the Council by the Acting Executive Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Mr Ibrahim Magu.

EFCC had in its petition to the NJC alleged that Justice R. N. Ofili-Ajumogobia is a Director/Chief Executive Officer and sole signatory to Nigel and Colive Company contrary to the Code of Conduct for Judicial Officers of the Federal Republic of Nigeria; that several personalities, individuals, government officials and business partners lodged funds into various accounts belonging to the Judge; and that there was an ex-parte communication between the Hon. Judge and Mr. Godwin Oblah, SAN, during the pendency of his matter before His Lordship.

Although there were other allegations contained in the petition, the NJC determined the fate of Justice Ajumogobia based on the three-point allegations listed above while it did not attend to others having been submitted before a law court where the judge was standing trial to enable the case take its legal course.

But four years and one month after she was booted out of office following alleged engagement in professional misconduct, the NJC under the leadership of the incumbent CJN, Justice Olukayode Ariwoola turned 360 degree to reverse its October 3, 2018 decision and reinstated her into office on December 5, 2022 or thereabouts.

The decision to return Justice Ofili-Ajumogobia back to the bench after she had mounted the dock like a common criminal to stand trial over corruption allegation for four full years came as a rude shock to many Nigerians, including lawyers, judges and non-lawyers but were careful to volunteer comments.

A prominent lawyer and member of the inner bar who is close to this reporter said the decision of the NJC to reverse itself was shocking but “which lawyer who may have cases in the nearest future will open his mouth to say what the NJC has done is not right?

“Don’t forget that these judges conduct themselves as if they are cult members. Justice Ajumogobia is a high court judge. All the favourable judgments in favour of the judge are from her colleagues. That is not to indict the judges. But which lawyer would open his mouth to criticize the decision and still expect that he would go places in this profession?

“The only defence they have all been mouthing now is that there have been precedents. Some judges were also accused of corruption before or after Justice Ajumogobia, some were arrested, some were even arraigned and they were brought back into the system after they were cleared. So, in this case, there is nothing anybody can do about it,” he added pleading anonymity.

However, a popular non-governmental organisation operating under the name and style of A2J came out to openly criticize the NJC over its decision to reinstate Justice Ajumogobia.

But a prominent legal practitioner and renowned constitutional lawyer, Chief Mike Ozekhome (SAN) had replied the A2J asking it to let Justice Ajumogobia and the decision of the NJC be.

In fact, Chief Ozekhome (SAN) had expressed surprise that the non-governmental organisation peopled mostly by lawyers could even muster the courage to criticize NJC over the decision given the facts of the case and precedents.

However, on the social media, many Nigerians used various unprintable words to express their disapproval over the decision of the NJC to reinstate the dismissed judge.

They had wondered how such a judge would have the legitimacy to sit in judgments over criminal cases that will come before her after the judge had herself, for four full years, been called to the dock like a common criminal to answer criminal charges touching on how she allegedly engaged in exparte communication with a lawyer who had a case in her court, ran a corporate organisation contrary to the Code of Conduct for public officers which account was used to collect funds from various individuals and organisations between 2012 and 2015.

They had also wondered how a party that loses case in her court would feel given the various allegations that put her integrity in doubt more so when those allegations were not determined on merit before she was given a clean bill of health on technical ground.

Also worrisome, according to Nigerians, is the fact that some Nigerians had appeared in court to give damning evidence against her, some of who could still have a reason to appear in the nearest future before her if indeed she was reinstated.

But Dr Mike Ozekhome (SAN) has taken his time to clear the air on the concerns raised by these Nigerians who are not lawyers.

Who is Justice R.N. Ajumogobia?

Justice Rita Ngozi Ofili-Ajumogobia was born with a silver spoon in her mouth. Her father, Justice McDonald Ofili, an indigene of Delta State, was a judge while her mother, Mrs Cordelia Ofili was a Justice of Peace. Rita, as she was popularly known before her bench days, was married to Mr Soboma Seniapuye Ajumogobia.

Rita had her elementary education at Greycoates Prep School, N.W.6, London, UK. She however, had her secondary school education at both the Federal Government Girls College and Baptist High School, Benin City before she proceeded to Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile Ife to study Law. She attended the Nigerian Law School, Victoria Island in Lagos to train as a professional lawyer and also attended the Chartered Institute of Arbitration, Angel Gate, London to train as a professional arbitrator.

She was at the Chambers of the legendary Kehinde Sofola & Co for her pupillage and had served briefly as Lecturer in Evidence and Procedure and Criminal Law Procedure at the Advanced Training Wing of the Southern Police College in Ikeja, Lagos between 1984 and 1985 during her NYSC year. She set up her private firm in 1993 and was the Principal Partner of Ofili & Ajumogobia located on Military St., Onikan, Lagos till November 2003. She became a judge on November 7, 2004 and remained so for 13 full years before she had issues with the EFCC in 2017 and dismissed from service by President Muhammadu Buhari on the recommendation of the NJC on November 7, 2018.

But the decision by the NJC to recommend her dismissal had since been voided by the order of a law court and she is now back to the bench to dispense justice.

What went wrong with Justice Ajumogobia’s career between 2017 and 2022?

Justice R.N. Ajumogobia had served on the bench for well over 10 years without any issue. But sometime between 2015 and 2016, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC received a couple of petitions alleging breach of code of conduct for public officers and engagement in corrupt practices between 2012 and 2015 against the judge.

After review of the petitions, investigators were assigned to probe the allegations.

On October 19, 2016, men of the EFCC who were assigned the case invited the Honourable Judge for questioning in their office but she did not honour the invitation on the account that she was admitted in Gold Cross Hospital in Lagos receiving treatment, promising that she would appear in the anti-graft agency’s office as soon as she was discharged.

Unknown to her, the EFCC investigators visited the hospital not only to confirm if indeed she was admitted there but also to arrest her.

However, upon enquiries at the hospital, they discovered that the judge did not even come to the hospital on the said date let alone being admitted there.

That was how the trouble started.

After she was eventually questioned regarding issues raised in the petitions against her, the EFCC slammed a 26-count charge against her before a Lagos High Court sitting at Ikeja.

The offences bordered on unlawful enrichment, taking property by a public officer, corruption by a public officer, forgery and giving false information to an official of the EFCC.

Specifically, Justice Ajumogobia was alleged to have given false information to anti-graft agency, claiming to be on admission in Lagos which was found to be false, an offence contrary to section 39 (2a) of the EFCC Establishment Act.

Besides, the judge was accused of receiving a total of $793, 800 in several tranches from different sources between 2012 and 2015.

Ofili-Ajumogobia stood trial alongside Mr Godwin Obla, SAN, a former prosecutor of the EFCC for EFCC.

The duo were jointly charged with two-counts of perverting the course of justice while Obla faced an additional two counts of offering gratification in the sum of N5 million to Ofili-Ajumogobia, a public official, while serving as a judge.

But the duo of Ajumogobia and Obla pleaded not guilty to the charge.

While preparing to go to court, the EFCC did a petition to the NJC to disclose the case it had against Justice Ajumogobia and its intention to prosecute her.

Ajumogobia on trial

When EFCC eventually arraigned Justice Ajumogobia alongside the senior lawyer, Obla, before Justice Hakeem Oshodi at the Lagos High Court, Ikeja, the accused persons entered a plea of not guilty while the EFCC announced its decision to proceed against them.

Before the trial started, EFCC had filed its proof of evidence against the serving judge and listed 12 witnesses that would give evidence to nail her.

The witnesses are the Deputy Comptroller of Nigeria Customs Service, Mr Tahir Audu Musa, an Assistant Comptroller General of Customs Service; one Musa Omale, Mr Robertson Emafidon, Mr Uchenna Okaranolu, Mr Charles Musa, Mr Frank Ezenwe, Mr Danladi Haliyu, Mr Abdullahi Lawal, Dr Olumuyiwa Solanke, Dr Gregory Ero and the Registrar of Titles of the Bureau of Lands, Lagos.

What some of the witnesses said about her during trial

During the trial, both Tahir Musa Audu and Musa Omale who were the Comptroller-General and Assistant Comptroller- General of the Nigeria Customs Service respectively, gave evidence on how they paid the sum of N12 million on the instruction of the former Comptroller-General of the NCS in 2014 into the account of Nigel and Colive Limited, owned and run by the serving judge, Justice Ajumogobia

Testifying, Omale told Justice Oshodi that: “The instructions were carried out as directed and on July 11, 2014, the N12 million was paid in three tranches of N3 million, N4 million and N5 million into Nigel and Colive Limited’s account. No services were rendered by our command to warrant the payment of the funds into the account,” adding that in his profession, instructions of superior officers are meant to be obeyed and not queried.

Another prosecution witness, Mr Uchenna Okaranwolu, a former banker, had revealed to the court that the Delta State Government had paid N15 million into Justice Ajumogobia’s Access Bank account while the Head of Regulatory Liaison at the Head Office of the UBA, Mr Robertson Emafidon, revealed during proceedings, details of the N5 million which was transferred from Chief Godwin Obla’s United Bank of Africa (UBA) bank into the judge’s account.

Emafidon said: “There was a debit of N5million on May 21, 2015 from the account of Obla and Co into the bank account of Nigel and Colive Ltd.”

The founder, Chief Executive Officer of Arkleel Oil and Gas, Dr Gregory Ero had also told the Lagos High Court, Ikeja how the embattled Federal High Court Judge, Justice Rita Ofili-Ajumogobia stopped picking his calls after she borrowed N18 million from him to buy a property in the UK.

Ero in his testimony before Justice Hakeem Oshodi claimed that despite Ajumogobia promising to repay the money, after sometime, she stopped picking his calls.

Ero was the ninth prosecution witness for the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission in the bribery and corruption trial of Ajumogobia.

According to him: “I knew Ajumogobia sometime in 2002 before she became a Federal High Court Judge. She was employed when we outsourced for a secretary. She was paid ad hoc fees as we did not have a regular structure as at then. She worked with us for two years before she was appointed as a Judge.

“She came to our office one day after she stopped working with us and sought to have a private audience with me. I obliged and she asked for a loan of N18 million because she had pressing needs.

“I enquired what the urgency was about and Ajumogobia told me that she had a shortfall of N18m for a property she wanted to buy in the UK as she needed to move out of the family house immediately.

“As a Christian, I obliged her request and also based on the fact that she is known to me. She went further to tell me that she has properties, which would generate rent while also giving me a payment plan for the repayment of the loan.

“Sadly after a year, she did not pay back. I started calling her and she would pick my call. But between 2012 and 2013, she stopped picking my calls. I personally went to her house but I was turned back at the gate when I was informed that she was not around. I went to her house more than 20 times but I was always turned back at the gate.

“I am disappointed in Ajumogobia as I find her actions bizarre. Up till now, she has refused to pay me my money. I still need my money as the money was taken from our retail earnings. I have not written it off, I still need my money,” he explained.

Although the EFCC called all its witnesses to give evidence in the case, Justice Ajumogobia through her lawyer, Chief Robert Clarke maintained a preliminary objection to challenge the jurisdiction of the court to hear the suit.

Clarke (SAN) had maintained that by virtue of Section 158 of the 1999 Constitution, only the National Judicial Council had the power to deal with the kind of allegations brought by the EFCC against his client, a serving judge.

Before the trial judge gave judgment in the case, the anti-graft agency, on its own, on June 15, 2019 filed an application that the entire charge preferred against Justice Ajumogobia be struck out for want of jurisdiction, the proceedings being not in line with the guidelines of the NJC based on the Appeal Court decision in the case of Nganjiwa v Federal Republic of Nigeria.

The request from the EFCC came four months after it concluded its evidence against the judge.

What is the decision of the Court of Appeal on the trial of serving judges in Nigeria?

The EFCC had at almost the same time it began prosecution of Justice Ofili-Ajumogobia, also arraigned another serving judge of the Federal High Court, Bayelsa Division, Justice Hyeladzira Nganjiwa on June 23, 2017 before a Lagos High Court sitting in Igbosere for allegedly receiving $260,000 and N8.65 millon gratification to enrich himself as a public official.

The judge had pleaded not guilty and trial commenced before Justice Adedayo Akintoye.

A respected silk, Chief Robert Clark (SAN) who was the counsel to Justice Ofili-Ajumogobia was also the counsel to Justice Nganjiwa.

The same way Robert Clarke challenged the jurisdiction of the Lagos High Court, Ikeja to hear Justice Ajumogobia’s case, he had also challenged the jurisdiction of the Lagos High Court, Igbosere to hear the Nganjiwa’s case.

He had contended that by virtue of Section 158 of the 1999 Constitution, only the National Judicial Council had the power to deal with the kind of allegations brought by the EFCC against his client, a serving judge.

But the EFCC’s prosecuting counsel Rotimi Oyedepo, disagreed with Clarke in the two cases and rather maintained that despite being serving judges, both Justice Nganjiwa and Ajumogobia did not have immunity against criminal prosecution.

“We must be bold enough to concede that the NJC has administrative power in the appointment and administrative discipline of a judicial officer. But Section 158 of the Constitution did not clothe the applicant with immunity from criminal trial.

“While the act complained about can amount to misconduct that can weigh on the mind of the NJC in recommending the removal of the applicant from office, that same misconduct that has constituted an offence in Lagos State is still liable to be determined by this court,” Oyedepo had argued.

In the Nganjiwa’s case which was first decided, Justice Akintoye had upheld Oyedepo’s argument and dismissed Justice Nganjiwa’s objection.

But Justice Nganjiwa appealed the ruling of the trial High Court to the Court of Appeal

After hearing out both parties, the Court of Appeal quashed the 14 count charges filed against Justice Nganjiwa.

The Appeal Court, in the well considered decision in the case of Nganjiwa v Federal Republic of Nigeria held that the EFCC does not have the power to investigate and prosecute serving judicial officers.

The intermediate appellate court held that the NJC must first strip Justice Nganjiwa or any serving judicial officer of his judicial standing before he could be charged to court.

The Court of Appeal further held that serving judicial officers could only be prosecuted for offences such as murder and stealing done outside the discharge of their duties.

The court specifically held that once judicial officers allegedly commit any offence in the discharge of their duties, they must be tried first by the NJC.

EFCC withdraws charge against Justice Ofili Ajumogobia, re-arrests her

As soon as the Court of Appeal gave its decision in Nganjiwa’s case, EFCC voluntarily applied to the court that the entire proceedings against Justice Ajumogobia be struck out having known that by the principle of stare decisis, a lower court must follow the decision of a higher court particularly when the facts of the case as in the instant one are the same.

It was therefore not surprising that the trial High Court in Ikeja, Lagos struck out the case against Justice Ajumogobia on April 16, 2019 following the application of the EFCC.

But on the day the high court struck out the entire charge against Justice Ajumogobia, the EFCC had detailed about 10 of its plain-clothed men to re-arrest the freed judge.

Call Bridget Edokwe Esq on 08060798767 or send your email