NJC axes another judge

The National Judicial Coun­cil (NJC) yesterday recom­mended the compulsory retirement of Justice B. T. Ebuta of the High Court of Justice, Cross River State with immediate effect.

The disciplinary body of ju­dicial officers in the country un­der the chairmanship of the Hon. Chief Justice of Nigeria, Hon. Jus­tice Mahmud Mohammed, at its 76th meeting which was held on 1st and 2nd June, 2016, handed down the decision.

According to a statement is­sued yesterday by the council’s Acting Director of Information, Mr. Soji Oye, Justice Ebuta’s rec­ommended sack followed a peti­tion that was written against him by an aggrieved litigant, Dr (Mrs) Ekanem Cobham who had alleged that the judge granted an ex-parte application without a lawful court sitting.

The statement reads in part: “Hon Justice B. T. Ebuta was rec­ommended for compulsory retire­ment from Office to the Governor of Cross River State, sequel to the findings by the Council on the al­legations of abuse of judicial pow­er, suppression and illegal/forceful takeover of a property in Calabar as contained in the petition writ­ten against him by Dr (Mrs) Eka­nem Cobham who alleged:

“That Hon. Justice B.T. Eb­uta made an order based on ex-parte application without sitting in Court.

“That Hon. Justice B.T. Ebuta granted the said ex-parte applica­tion to unseal her property which was sealed on the order of a Mag­istrate Court when her tenant, Mr Ugochukwu Chijioke failed to pay rent for two years. She stated that she filed Suit No MC/RT/12/6/14 at the Magistrate Court, Calabar against her tenant for failing to pay her rent and judgement was delivered in her favour on 10th November, 2014.

“That the respondent filed an ex-parte application in Suit No. MC/MSC/143/2014 before the Magistrate Court to unseal the property without her knowledge and that the respondent’s counsel filed a similar application at the High Court. On getting to the High Court, she discovered that the court did not sit.

“That she applied and paid for the certified true copy of the purported record of proceedings, but was told by the court clerk that there was no sitting on that day, as claimed by the judge.

“That her money was then returned to her and she reported this development to the Registrar of the Court.

Council investigated the alle­gations and found out that they were all true.

“The allegation constitutes misconduct contrary to Section 292(1)(b) of the 1999 Constitu­tion of the Federal Republic of Ni­geria, as amended and Rules 1.3 and 3.5 of the 2016 Revised Code of Conduct for Judicial Officers of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

“In the meantime, the Na­tional Judicial Council has in the exercise of its disciplinary pow­ers under the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nige­ria, as amended, suspended Hon. Justice B. T. Ebuta from office with immediate effect pending the ap­proval of the recommendation of the council for his lordship’s com­pulsory retirement by the gover­nor of Cross River State.”