Onnoghen Not In Court For Trial As CCT Begins Sitting

CCT Begins Sitting On Walter Onnoghen’s Case

The Code of Conduct Tribunal sitting in Abuja has commenced trial in the case against Chief Justice Of Nigeria, Walter Onnoghen  with the accused not seen or sighted anywhere around the court.

Meanwhile a team of 89 lawyers led by Chief Wole Olanipekun (SAN), has arrived the Code Conduct Tribunal in Abuja to defend him (Onnoghen).

Recall that the Federal government slated today, January 14, 2019, to arraign Justice Onnoghen before the CCT on charges of failures to declare his assets as required by law and for operating Bank Domiciliary Foreign Currency Accounts.

Some Senior Advocates of Nigeria in his defence team who were already seated before 9am awaiting the commencement of the proceedings included, Chief Chris Uche, Chief Adegboyega Awomolo, Sebastine Hon, Chukwuma-Machukwu Ume, Kehinde Ogunwumiju,and A.T Kehinde.

‎All the senior lawyers are in court with their teeming juniors.

The Team of Petitioners are also currently present in the court for the Trial.

Meanwhile, a former Director of Public Prosecution in Kano State, Aliyu Umar (SAN), is going to lead the government prosecution’s ‎team.

Umar arrived the CCT at about 9.10am.

He was one of the senior lawyers appointed by the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Abubakar Malami (SAN), as part of what was meant to be the government’s prosecution team in 2016.

Umar led the government’s prosecution team that was to prosecute the Senate President Bukola Saraki and his deputy, Ike Ekweremadu for alleged forgery of Senate rules.

The charges were later withdrawn from court by the Umar-led legal team.

Meanwhile comments and critics have not stopped trailing the speed with which events that led to the petition and arraignment of the CJN were handled, Naija News reports.