Justice Muhammad Dattijo, retiring at the age of 70, has expressed his disapproval of the Supreme Court of Nigeria for allowing President Bola Tinubu to remain in office despite forging a school certificate. He criticized the court’s bribery and perversion of justice, stating that many officials and judges have no clear understanding of what it means to deliver justice to the Nigerian people.
Dattijo also cited Oludotun Adefope-Okojie, a former justice of the Court of Appeal, as another judge who criticized the judiciary’s corrupt practices. He questioned whether the judiciary needs to be begged or cajoled to administer justice without fear or favor.
The Supreme Court’s decision to allow Tinubu to remain in office despite his violation of the Constitution with his forged academic document to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) was seen by many as further evidence that the judiciary had been captured. A seven-member panel of the Supreme Court, led by John Okoro, said Atiku Abubakar, Tinubu’s main challenger, was late in procuring the evidence, even though the court had several precedents in which additional evidence could be tendered in a case.
Chief Justice Kayode Ariwoola, who spoke before Dattijo, was also under criticism for expressing disdain for the opinion of Nigerians on the judiciary and urging judges to ignore public perceptions when handling cases. Ariwoola was questioned by the State Security Service in December 2022 for publicly expressing partisanship in Nigeria’s upcoming election scheduled for February 2023. Although the Supreme Court denied Ariwoola’s statement, a video subsequently surfaced online showing the court lied and the chief justice made partisan statements during an event organized by Nyesom Wike in Port Harcourt.
