Ekiti lawyers petition NJC over rulings by Nwite 

Lawyers, under the aegis of Ekiti Lawyers Vanguard for Transparency, have petitioned the Chairman of the National Judicial Council, Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekun, against Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court, Abuja over alleged controversial rulings and other misconducts.

The legal practitioners further accused Nwite of bias and unjust conduct, maintaining that the judge’s actions were capable of bringing Nigeria to great disrepute if they were not curbed.

The lawyers alleged that Nwite, who restrained the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) from probing Oluwaseun Odewale, a former aide to ex-Governor Kayode Fayemi and Ariyo Oyinkolawa Adesola and shielded them from prosecution on their alleged role in corruption cases, was the same judge who issued a controversial bench warrant for the arrest of a former Governor of Kogi State, Alhaji Yahaya Bello, despite the pendency of an order of a State High Court stopping his arrest and prosecution.

The petition was addressed to the chairman of NJC and signed by 10 lawyers, namely Ademiloye Oladotun, Balogun Adeyemi, Fadeshola Alice, Ola-Ojo Samuel, Olayinka Ibrahim, Adebayo Joel, Akintoye Bayonle, Ogundare Kayode, Adaramola Olakunle and Igandan Olawunmi, on behalf of 54 lawyers, who are members of the Vanguard.