Nigeria: Ex-chief judge's motion to dismiss rejected

By Rafiu Ajakaye

LAGOS Nigeria (AA) - Nigeria's conduct tribunal on Friday dismissed a motion to dismiss by the country's suspended chief justice, saying prosecution has successfully established issues which he must answer to.

Walter Onnoghen, chief justice until his January suspension by the president, had asked the tribunal to dismiss a six-count charge of false assets declaration, arguing that the prosecution failed to establish that he had any guilt.

Onnoghen called the charges “useless and invalid,” insisting that the conduct bureau, which filed the charges, had failed to follow its own standard procedures.

But the three-person tribunal held that Onnoghen's admission that he forgot to declare parts of his assets -- including some bank accounts -- was enough grounds for him to enter his defense in the trial.

The tribunal also accused the top judge of seeking to frustrate the trial.

The tribunal adjourned to Monday for Onnoghen to begin his defense -- although his lawyers insisted that time was too short to prepare a defense.

Having technically been removed as Nigeria's head of the judiciary, Onnoghen has gone down as the most prominent casualty of President Muhammadu Buhari's anti-corruption campaign.