CCT Adjourns Justice Onnoghen’s Trial Indefinitely

By Modupe Gbadeyanka

The trial of the suspended Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Mr Walter Onnoghen, at the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) has adjourned indefinitely.

Mr Onnoghen was removed from office last Friday by President Muhammadu Buhari, after obtaining an order from the CCT.

The CJN was accused of not declaring some of his assets to the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) as stipulated by the Nigerian law.

He was thereafter charged before the CCT and removed from office last Friday by the President, with the next most senior judicial officer, Justice Tanko Mohammad, appointed as the acting CJN.

At the resumption of his trial on Monday in Abuja, Chairman of the CCT, Justice Danladi Umar, held that the matter is adjourned sine die pending the determination of a suit filed at the appeal court on the same matter.

This followed the prosecutor calling the attention of the Tribunal to the business of the day, which ought to be the hearing of the application on jurisdiction.

In view of the order of the Court of Appeal, the prosecution, however, sought for an adjournment until the hearing and determination of the appeal court, which the defence did not object to.