The Speaker of the Osun State House of Assembly, Adewale Egbedun, says the assembly has no intention to encroach on the powers of the National Judicial Council (NJC) by the suspension of the state’s Chief Judge, Adepele Ojo.
Mr Egbedun, in a statement by his media aide, Olamide Tiamiyu, on Monday in Osogbo, the state capital, said the assembly was only performing its constitutional duties.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the assembly had on 16 November, passed a resolution for the suspension of the Chief Judge (CJ) over alleged corruption, abuse of powers, among others.
The assembly, carefully avoiding the use of the word “suspend”, rather asked the Chief Judge to “step aside.”
But the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) has argued that neither the governor nor the House of Assembly has the power to suspend a Chief Judge without the input of the NJC either in the form of “step aside” or under any other guise.
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Mr Egbedun, during an emergency plenary on Monday, said the suspension was based on series of petitions received by the assembly against the CJ.
He said the petitions accused the Chief Judge of corruption, gross misconduct and abuse of office.
The assembly also advised the governor to appoint the next most senior judge in the state as the acting CJ.
On the same day, Governor Ademola Adeleke, in a statement by his spokesperson, Olawale Rasheed, approved the suspension of the CJ.
The governor also announced the appointment of David Afolabi as the acting CJ with immediate effect.