By Jibrin Sam Okutepa SAN
I do not know what points the Federal Republic of Nigeria or the Federal Government of Nigeria wants to score with the criminal charges it filed against distinguished Senator Natasha Akpoti Uduaghan for the alleged criminal defamation of the Senate President and Yahaya Bello. I can see nothing useful other than a waste of public resources to prosecute the distinguished Senator to cowed her to keep quiet. The charge in my honest and humble view was filed purely for partisan political vengeance not rooted in the overall interests of Nigerians and the public interests.
There is no doubt that daily we read on social and conventional media how monies belonging to the people of Nigeria have been stolen by those who served or who have served in the Nigerian government and some are still serving in the government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in various departments.
The pursuits of those who are alleged to have stolen these monies will be more of public interests and the interest of justice than the vengeful pursuit of Senator Natasha Akpoti Uduaghan.
Recently it was alleged that Alaja Steel company worth more than 700million dollars was allegedly sold for partry sum of 30million dollars. The stealing of these monies in my view can not be done without the connivance, acquiescence and or knowledge of the people in the government and to fund the political activities of the politicians. That is why in my view one man can be untouchable in political parties and everyone worships such individuals.
How public funds are stolen by most public officeholders is mind-boggling. Why can’t the Federal government of Nigeria pursue these economic saboteurs instead of wasting taxpayers money to prosecute Senator Natasha Akpoti Uduaghan for what appears to be pure private interests and reputation of individuals that has no economics values to the people of Nigeria. Just recently we heard of Emefiele houses. Did Emiefiele steal these funds without the knowledge of the security agencies? I do not think so. Are security agencies allowed to go after big thieves? I do not think so.
The government know the thieves of public funds but the government is afraid of these thieves or covers up for these thieves because most of the thieves are either in governments or closely connected with those in government that they are always untouchable. Until we have a government that is bold and courageous to fight the thieves in government and make examples so with governmental appointments be the greatest stealing platform.
So the real problem of Nigeria is not senator Natasha Akpoti Uduaghan. So when I read on social media that the Federal government of Nigeria through the office of the Hon Attorney of the Federation filed a criminal charge in FRN vs Senate Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan before the FCT High Court due to the statement made by Senator Natasha Akpoti Uduaghan on the political programme on channels TV and political rally that the duo of the Senate President and Yahaya Bello had planned to kill her, I doubted the stories that the Federal government can file such changes until I saw the charge on social media.
According to the charge, distinguished Senator Natasha Akpoti Uduaghan is accused of making allegations against the duo of the Senate President and Yahaya Bello that have the potential to harm the reputation of the said Senate President and Yahaya Bello. Well, while it may well be true that the Attorney General either of the states or the Federation is a law unto himself and he can file criminal charges against anyone save those who have immunities, the constitution placed on his shoulders grave constitutional responsibilities to the effect that in filing criminal charges the Attorney must have regard to the interest of justice, public interest and the need to prevent abuse of the legal process.
Can it be reasonably said that given the issues raised by distinguished Senator Natasha Akpoti Uduaghan, the circumstances leading to the various allegations she made against these persons, and even the circumstances leading to what made her, make the allegations, can it be said that this criminal charge was not filed too hasty and in abuse of power to lead to the reasonable conclusion that the Federal government of Nigeria is engaging in criminal persecution rather than prosecution and to suppress Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan?. I think reasonable members of the society will go with the impression thinking that the Federal government of Nigeria has joined forces oppressing Natasha Akpoti Uduaghan to further oppress her.
Honestly in my humble but firm view, the filing of this charge is ill-timed and certainly not in the overall interest of public interest. On the 12th of December 2024, I had a cause to write: “If you want the best place to study and learn how to put the law to bad use and for ulterior purposes, it is in Nigeria. The Nigerian systems allow the misuse of power using law to attain unlawful ends to satisfy primordial partisan selfish interests. All that the security agencies need to do in the abuse of power and to keep you out of circulation is one bogus allegation or the other and the judex is likely to lock you up. There is nowhere in the world that people abuse judicial processes like in Nigeria. If you ever handle election matters, you will understand the point. The number of motions and processes filed to overwhelm the Judex and the opponents is just unimaginable. Justice is undermined, and confidence in justice is eroded daily. That is why development is eluding Nigeria. Those who are supposed to use the law for the good of the people circumvent laws either to enrich themselves or misuse the law as an instrument of oppression. In Nigeria today, despite the avalanche of judicial decisions that security agencies have no jurisdiction to allow themselves to be used as instruments to recover debts in contractual relationships, many Nigerians are in prison based purely on civil contracts. Most security agencies today act as debt recovery agencies on a commission basis. The powerful, the affluent, and the touch not people in society in most cases have these security agencies in their pockets. These security agencies obey unlawful orders and directions. The victims of misuse of these powers have no remedies. There are no immediate remedies for victims of misuse of power in Nigeria. The wrongdoers know this. That is why oppressive proceedings last longer in our courts. Abuses of judicial processes are tools of trade of oppression in Nigeria.
In most cases, you see many victims of lawless adjudications languishing in prison at the instance and instigation of the most powerful individuals using the apparatus of the state. Can we as a people boast of immediate remedies for victims of lawlessness in Nigerian society? I do not think so. In Nigeria and just like any other civilised society, lawyers and judges are not to be sued for the cases they do or file, and judicial officers too are immune from being sued in adjudications in cases before the courts. This immunity is being gradually abused in some glaring cases in the courts. But is it not time we start thinking of reviewing this immunity and allowing those who suffered terrible pains in the hands of some judges and lawyers to have recourse to litigations to get remedies? Where the is a wrong there must be remedies.
While it may be argued that victims of judicial adjudications rooted in lawlessness can petition the relevant bodies of the judex and the legal practitioners to the Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee of the Body of Benchers, it is doubtful if such decisions if at all rendered on time can properly compensate victims of judicial lawlessness and professional oppressive proceedings that some lawyers filed.
I think it is time for us as people to start looking at the misuse of which law is being put against hapless Nigerians to punish them unjustly and unnecessarily. There are many victims of lawless adjudications in Nigeria. We must think of the immediate remedies for lawlessness in legal practice and adjudications in Nigeria. The rate at which people suffer in this area is becoming too alarming. It is assuming the character of electoral robbery in Nigeria. I believe that it is a failure of the systems to give immediate remedies to victims of oppressive persecution that has emboldened the powerful in Nigeria to misuse the law to the prejudices of justice. The time has come that we should, as a people, provide immediate remedies for victims of lawlessness. No society can grow and develop when wrongdoers are celebrated while the victims of wrongdoers are left without remedies. This is the sad reality of our systems of governance in Nigeria”
Even though my view above was expressed in 2024 before the filing of this criminal charges against Senator Natasha Akpoti Uduaghan I think this is the meaning of the charge against distinguished Senator Natasha Akpoti Uduaghan. We have to just watch to see how the drama will unfold. I am looking forward to this acrobatics legal gymnastics rooted in what appears to be misuse of prosecutorial power of the Federal government in political disputes between Nigerian citizens who ought to enjoy equal protection of the Federal might. The stand of the Federal government is simply at variance with the equal duties and responsibilities it owe us all as Nigerians. But what do I know. Power corrupt absolutely power corrupt absolutely I can see in this unfortunate charge filed against a victim based as it were on system oppression.
