Buhari replaces Onnoghen with Justice Ibrahim Tanko Mohammed as acting CJN

The Federal Government on Friday, January 25 suspended Walter Onnoghen, the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN) who is facing corruption trial before the Code of Conduct Tribunal.

The Federal Government said the removal was based on the order of the CCT of January 23  and that the suspension stands till the conclusion of his trial at the tribunal.

Consequently, President Muhammadu Buhari on Friday, January 25 swore in Justice Ibrahim Tanko Mohammed from Bauchi State as the acting CJN. Mohammed was conveyed to the Presidential Villa at about 4:30pm in a black Mercedes Benz C240 with number plate GWA: 900FA.

On Thursday, the federal appeal court ordered that the trial of Onnoghen should be stopped pending the time it would rule on the CCT jurisdiction to handle the case.

Indeed, trouble started for Onnoghen when Dennis Aghanya, the executive secretary of the Anti-Corruption and Research Based Data Initiative, ARDI, a civil society group, petitioned the CCB, over an alleged non-declaration of assets by the CJN.

The petition, dated January 7, 2019, was signed by Aghanya and was stamped “received” by the office of the CCB chairman on January 9.

The ARDI, in the letter, alleged that “Onnoghen was the owner of sundry accounts primarily funded through cash deposits made by himself up till as recently as August 10, 2016, which appear to have been run in a manner inconsistent with financial transparency and the code of conduct for public officials.”

In the petition, the group said Onnoghen made five different cash deposits of $10,000 each on March 8, 2011, into Standard Chartered Bank Account 1062650; two separate cash deposits of $5,000 each followed by four cash deposits of $10,000 each on June 7, 2011.

It added that the CJN further made another set of five separate cash deposits of $10,000 each on June 27, 2011, and four more cash deposits of $10,000 each the following day.

The group alleged that prior to 2016, Onnoghen appeared “to have suppressed or otherwise concealed the existence of these multiple domiciliary accounts owned by him, as well as the substantial cash balances in them.”

It said: “The discrepancy between Justice Walter Onnoghen’s two CCB forms that were filed on the same day is significant.

“In filling the section on Details of Assets, particularly cash in Nigerian Banks, His Lordship, as Declarant SCN: 000014, mentioned only two bank accounts: Union Bank account number 0021464934 in Abuja, with balance of N9,536,407, as of 14th November, 2014, and Union Bank account number 0012783291 in Calabar, with balance of N11, 456,311 as of 14th November, 2014.