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Senior Advocate of Nigeria, SAN, Femi Falana has reacted to the supreme court judgement nullifying the conviction of Abia North senate representative, Orji Uzr Kalu by a Federal High Court and ordering a fresh trial of the case.
Kalu, his firm, Slok Nigeria Limited, and former Director of Finance in Abia State, Jones Udeogu were in December convicted and sentenced by Justice Mohammed Idris of the Federal High Court in Lagos for a N7.1bn fraud.
But yesterday Friday, the apex court set aside the appeal on the grounds that the trial judge, Justice Mohammed Liman, was no longer a judge of the Federal High Court as at the time he sat and delivered the judgment that convicted the defendants for allegedly stealing about N7.1bn from Abia State treasury.
Justice Ejembi Eko, who delivered the lead judgment also declared as unconstitutional the provision of section 396(7) of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, 2015, on which the then President of the Court of Appeal, Justice Zainab Bulkachuwa (retd), relied on to authorise Justice Idris to return to the Court of Appeal to conclude the trial.
In a unanimous decision by the seven-man panel of justices, led by Justice Olabode Rhodes-Vivour, the apex court therefore directed the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court to assign the case to another judge of the court for the trial to commence afresh.
But reacting to the judgement, Falana remarked that the Nigerian legal system demonstrated its capacity to function effectively and serve the interests of the pampered members of the ruling class.
According to The Punch, the human right activist recalled that the Section 396(7) of ACJA was introduced to stop rampant instances where criminal cases involving high profile personalities were stalled for a long period as a result of the elevation of the trial judge to a higher court.
He explained how the trial of a former Managing Director of the defunct Intercontinental Bank, Erastus Akingbola, which had been fixed for final arguments, was made to start afresh, because the then trial judge, Justice Habeeb Abiru, was elevated to the Court of Appeal bench.
The senior advocate of Nigeria stated: “The same members of the ruling class have now got the Section of ACJA annulled. Head or tail, the members of the ruling class win, and it is the system that suffers.
“The Nigerian legal system has demonstrated its capacity to function effectively and serve the interests of the pampered members of the ruling class.
“A couple of months ago, ex-Emir Lamido Sanusi’s ex parte application to secure his personal liberty from illegal banishment was assigned, heard and granted the day it was filed at the registry of the federal court. On that same day, the certified true copy of the court order was obtained, served and obeyed by the detaining authorities.”
Falana further noted that Kalu’s appeal against his conviction and sentence was pending at the Court of Appeal while the proceedings at the trial court were quashed on the basis of the appeal filed by his co-defendant, Jones Udeogu.
He added, “Notwithstanding the order of the Supreme Court that the trial is commenced de novo (afresh), the case will not be concluded soon.
“Once again, the trial will have to go back to the Supreme Court!”
