The Civil Society Consortium for Civic Space has condemned the imprisonment of a human rights lawyer, Inibehe Effiongby the Chief Judge of Akwa Ibom State, Ekaette Obo.
Mr. Effiong, a Lagos-based lawyer, was jailed last Wednesday by Ms. Obot for alleged contempt of court.
The chief judge had ordered a Premium Times reporter, Savior Imukudo, out of the courtroom before ordering Mr. Effiong’s imprisonment.
The lawyer, who was defending his client, Leonard Ekpenyong, in a defamation lawsuit brought by Akwa Ibom Governor Udom Emmanuel, has had an ongoing battle with Ms. Obot, who was repeatedly asked by Mr. Effiong to step down. refrain from the claim.
But disputes between the lawyer and the judge came to a head last Wednesday when Ms Obot controversially sent Mr Effiong to Uyo prison for a month.
In a statement on Sunday, the Civil Society Consortium on Civic Space said “it is troubling that the state’s top judge is descending into the arena of conflict and siding with the governor on an issue where she should be a impartial judge. .”
It further said that Ms. Obot’s action “foreshadows the denial of Mr. Ekpenyong’s constitutional right to counsel and a fair hearing.”
The group accused the Akwa Ibom judiciary of colluding with other branches of government to “suppress civic space.”
‘The judiciary should enjoy separation powers’
Underlining the need for the independence of the judiciary, the group noted that “it is worrying that the Chief Justice (Chief Judge) of Akwa Ibom state…has allowed the governor to change the courts, which should be the last hope of the common man for a branch of his office.”
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While condemning the “arrogance of the presiding judge”, the coalition demanded Effiong’s immediate release from prison.
Referring to the Nigerian constitution and article 4 of the ECOWAS Treaty to “recognise, promote and protect human and peoples’ rights in accordance with the provisions of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights”, the group demanded “an immediate reversal of the 1 month sentence given to Mr. Effiong by the Chief Justice”.
Following Mr. Effiong’s imprisonment, the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) sent a delegation to Uyo in order to secure the lawyer’s release.
NBA President Olumide Akpata, in a Facebook post, expressed “great concern” over Effiong’s imprisonment.
He said he had contacted the president of the NBA’s Uyo branch, who revealed that he had mobilized his team to investigate the issue.
“This morning, I also directed the first vice president of the NBA (John Aikpokpo-Martins) to visit Uyo immediately to join the ongoing efforts to secure Mr. Effiong’s release,” Mr. Olumide said in the statement released by the court. last thursday.