Corruption, Not Judiciary Under Attack—Presidency

By Dipo Olowookere

The Presidency has reacted to reports that President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration was making effort to tame the judiciary, which is the third arm of government.

But in a statement issued on Sunday by the President’s spokesman, Mr Garba Shehu, the Presidency assures Nigerians of the government’s highest respect for the institution of the judiciary as the third arm of government.

To this end, the President will not do anything to undermine its independence, Mr Shehu said.

The statement said President Buhari remains a committed democrat, in words and in his action, and will not take any action in violation of the constitution.

He explained that the recent surgical operation against some judicial officers is specifically targeted at corruption and not at the judiciary as an institution.

In a robust democracy such as ours, there is bound to be a plurality of opinions on any given issue, but there is a convergence of views that the country has a corruption problem that needs to be corrected, Mr She said, lamenting that “reports by a section of the media are giving us cause for concern.”

According to him, “In undertaking the task of reporting, the media should be careful about the fault lines they open. It is wrong to present this incident as a confrontation between the executive and judicial arms of government.”

He said “the Presidency has received assurances from the DSS that all due processes of the law, including the possession of search and arrest warrants were obtained before the searches.

“To suggest that the government is acting outside the law in a dictatorial manner is to breach the interest of the state.”