NJC says Nigerian Judges will not step aside as directed by NBA

Our Lawyers,attorneys and judges help shape and maintain law and order in society.But what happens when these same respected legal men are the ones allegedly corrupting society?.
Today, the Nigerian Bar Association, asked all the judges being investigated over their alleged involvement in acts of corruption, to recuse themselves from further judicial functions or proceed on compulsory leave, until their innocence is fully and completely established. .
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The legal body said such step was not only necessary in order to protect the sanctity and integrity of judicial processes that may involve the judges concerned, but to also safeguard the public image of the judiciary as an institution.

But the National Judicial Council,NJC has come firing back on behalf of the judges by saying they will not step aside.

The NJC ‘s response follows a recommendation by the Nigerian Bar Association asking the seven judges to step aside pending the outcome of the investigation against them.

Speaking at a valedictory court session that was held in honour of a retiring Justice of the Court of Appeal, the NBA President, Justice Abubakar Mahmoud had said the decision was part of NBA’s commitment to “rid the judiciary of corrupt element.”
Mahmoud added that the NBA, after consultations with other stakeholders in the administration also resolved to set up a Task Force to urgently review the current developments and come up with clear specific recommendations on how best to clean up the nation’s judiciary.
However, the NJC in its response has insisted the judges will not step aside

In a statement the NJC said Mahmoud’s advice “is unacceptable to the NJC; as it breaches the 2014 Revised Judicial Discipline Regulations formulated by NJC pursuant to Section 160 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, as amended.