The Yoruba socio-political group, Afenifere, lawyers and some human rights groups have criticized the actions of the DSS, who raided the homes of some judges and arrested four of them.
The DSS and police operatives had on Friday night, and early hours of the morning pervaded the homes of the senior judges, bringing down doors and scaring the family members of the judges.
While the Department of State Service, claims that the raid which took place in Abuja, Gombe, and Port Harcourt was legal because its purpose was to bring the corrupt judges before the Law.
Civil rights groups and members of the Senior Advocates of Nigeria have however described the actions of the Department of State Service as an act of lawlessness and dictatorship with an abuse of human rights.
The National Publicity Secretary of Afenifere, Yinka Odumakin, condemned the act.
According to him, “It is executive lawlessness, and usurpation of investigative functions of the judicial arm of the government. It was not done with the authority of the National Judicial Council as stipulated in our constitution.”
“We are certainly descending into a deeper dictatorship trajectory than we have ever witnessed in our polity even during military interregnum.”
“If judges can come under this raw show of naked power, what would be the fate of the everyday citizens? This is a new law never witnessed in our country, and all lovers of justice, democracy and decency must condemn this barbaric act.”
President of Committee for the Defence of Human Rights, Malachy Ugwummadu, has described the act as a “misadventure too many and will be decisively resisted by all well -meaning Nigerians.”
According to him, “If it is left unchecked, they will intrude the hallowed precincts of our courts and desecrate them even during sittings.”
“President Buhari, must therefore rise to the occasion, and call for a full briefing into the circumstances of this breach of public peace, and obstruction of public officers in the discharge of their duties.”
Mr Adegboyega Awomolo, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, described the invasion as the height of corruption.
Adegboyega said, “Let the good people of the world note that this move to demystify, denigrate and ridicule the judiciary after humiliating the legislative.”
“What the executive is doing is not tackling corruption but promoting recklessness and impunity. Supreme Court Judges, are not absconding criminals to be harassed, attacked and whisked away in the night. This is barbaric and unacceptable.”
However, a human rights activist, Dr Jackson, has said that the DSS was justified in the actions they had taken. According to him, since the Judges had no immunity, they were entitled to any treatment they received and could be arrested at any time.
He said, “While I condemn the attitude of the judiciary because justice in Nigeria of today appears to be for sale, I also want to clarify that due process must be adopted before anybody is arrested.”
“It is wrong for anybody to condemn the time of the arrest because the law did not set a particular time of arrest for a suspect. One of the worst things that can happen to any country, is when judges pervert justice. It is worse than armed robbery.”
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