Onnoghen sacked

&NewLine;<p class&equals;"wp-block-paragraph">The Code of Conduct Tribunal &lpar;CCT&rpar; has found the suspended Chief Justice of Nigeria &lpar;CJN&rpar; Justice Walter Onnoghen guilty of violation of the code of conduct for public officers&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<p class&equals;"wp-block-paragraph">CCT Chairman&comma; Danladi Umar&comma; in a judgment on Thursday&comma; held that the prosecution proved beyond reasonable doubt that Onnoghen is guilty&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<p class&equals;"wp-block-paragraph">CCT says it has jurisdiction to try Onnoghen who made false asset declaration by deliberately omitting to declare the five domiciliary accounts he maintained with Standard Chartered Bank&comma; and in which huge deposits were found&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<p class&equals;"wp-block-paragraph">The tribunal after convicting him&comma; ordered among others&comma; his removal from office&comma; barred him from holding public office for the next 10 years and confiscated the funds in the five accounts&comma; which the tribunal said should be forfeited to the Federal Government&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<p class&equals;"wp-block-paragraph">Meanwhile&comma; the &nbsp&semi;erstwhile Chief Justice of Nigeria&comma; Walter Onnoghen&comma; pleaded &OpenCurlyQuote;No comment’ when the Code of Conduct Tribunal Chairman&comma; Danladi Umar&comma; asked him if he had anything to say before his conviction&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<p class&equals;"wp-block-paragraph">The incident happened on Thursday&comma; April 18 in Abuja as the CCT ruled in the six counts bordering on breach of Code of Conduct for Public Officers preferred against the embattled ex-CJN&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<p class&equals;"wp-block-paragraph">Reading the lead judgment&comma; Umar offered Onnoghen an opportunity to plead for mercy&period; But he stood up in the dock and bowed as he said&comma; &OpenCurlyDoubleQuote;No comment&period;”<&sol;p>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<p class&equals;"wp-block-paragraph">The Tribunal chairman then went on to impose the sentence&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<p class&equals;"wp-block-paragraph">Reading the judgment&comma; Umar said&comma; &OpenCurlyDoubleQuote;The defendant is hereby removed from office as the Chief Justice of Nigeria&comma; the Chairman of the National Judicial Council and the Chairman of the Federal Judicial Service Commission&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<p class&equals;"wp-block-paragraph">&OpenCurlyDoubleQuote;The defendant is hereby banned from holding public office for 10 years&period;”<&sol;p>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<p class&equals;"wp-block-paragraph">The Tribunal added&comma; &OpenCurlyDoubleQuote;The money in the five accounts which the defendant has failed to declare and disclose its source is hereby confiscated&comma; seized and forfeited to the Federal Government of Nigeria as the money was acquired illegally and the defendant has failed to adduce any evidence how he acquired the money&period;”<&sol;p>&NewLine;