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Party warns that glorifying Tinubu and Wike as ‘patrons of the judiciary’ undermines judicial independence and erodes public trust.

The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has launched a blistering attack on the All Progressives Congress (APC), accusing the ruling party of a “shameless, unethical, and inappropriate spectacle” for celebrating the commissioning of residential quarters for judges.

In a strongly worded statement issued on Thursday, ADC National Publicity Secretary, Malam Bolaji Abdullahi, declared that while judges deserve decent accommodation and welfare, these provisions “must not be packaged as personal achievements of government officials or as favours from politicians.” He stressed that such amenities are “constitutional obligations of government funded by the Nigerian taxpayer” and that neither President Bola Tinubu nor Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, is entitled to personal acclaim for discharging duties financed from public funds .

The ADC’s condemnation follows a statement by the APC praising President Tinubu and Minister Wike for the commissioning of the Court of Appeal Complex and residential quarters for justices, framing the project as a demonstration of the administration’s commitment to strengthening democratic institutions .

However, the opposition party argues that the celebration creates a dangerous impression. “What the APC has done, by awarding personal acclaim to both the President and his minister for building houses for judges, is to create the impression that the welfare of judges is subject to the whims and caprice of government officials or to executive benevolence,” Abdullahi stated .

The ADC warned that the ruling party’s attempt to “glorify President Tinubu and Minister Wike as patrons of the Judiciary” sends a troubling signal about the boundaries between the Executive and Judicial arms of government. “In every constitutional democracy governed by the principle of separation of powers, the Judiciary must never be placed in a position where its welfare can be publicly portrayed as a favour granted by political actors whose actions and interests may ultimately come before the courts,” the party said .

The opposition party also raised concerns about the optics, noting that “he who pays the piper dictates the tune” and arguing that this celebration could reinforce “widespread perception that the President and this particular minister, Wike already wield undue influence over the judiciary” .

Dismissing the APC’s claims that the project strengthens judicial independence as an “Orwellian irony,” the ADC insisted that true judicial independence is not measured by the number of buildings commissioned by politicians. Rather, it is “measured by institutional autonomy, financial independence, security of tenure, freedom from political pressure and the confidence of citizens that judges are accountable only to the Constitution and the law” .

The ADC concluded by describing the ruling party’s fanfare as a “shameless assault on the spirit of separation of powers” and called on the judiciary to be wary of the ethical implications of its relationship with the government, noting that the Nigerian judiciary already suffers from a “massive trust deficit” .

Below is full text of the ADC statement:

ADC to APC : YOU ARE SHAMELESS
-Opposition Slams Ruling Party for Celebrating Judges’s Housing, Says Action Undermines Judicial Independence.

The African Democratic Congress (ADC) condemns in the strongest terms the APC’s celebration of the commissioning of residential quarters for judges as a shameless, unethical and inappropriate spectacle that further erodes public confidence in the independence of the Judiciary.

Let it be clearly understood: judges deserve decent accommodation, adequate security and proper welfare. However; these must not be packaged as personal achievement of government officials or as favours from politicians. They are constitutional obligations of government funded by the Nigerian taxpayer.

The issue is therefore not the construction of the quarters in itself, but the dangerous impression of the Executive arm of government presenting itself as the benefactor of another constitutionally independent arm. Neither President Bola Tinubu nor Minister Nyesom Wike is therefore entitled to personal acclaim for discharging responsibilities financed from public funds.

What the APC has done, by awarding personal acclaim to both the President and his minister for building houses for judges is to create the impression that the welfare of judges is subject to the whims and caprice of government officials or to executive benevolence.
In every constitutional democracy governed by the principle of separation of powers, the Judiciary must never be placed in a position where its welfare can be publicly portrayed as a favour granted by political actors whose actions and interests may ultimately come before the courts.

What makes this development particularly troubling is the APC’s attempt to glorify President Tinubu and Minister Wike as patrons of the Judiciary. This action alone creates the unmistakable appearance that judicial welfare is dependent on executive benevolence rather than constitutional entitlement. It sends the wrong signal to Nigerians and inevitably raises legitimate concerns about the proper boundaries between the Executive and the Judiciary.
This is particularly disturbing given the widespread perception that the President and this particular minister, Wike already wield undue influence over the judiciary. The statement by the ruling party celebrating the duo can only give further credence to this belief. Afterall, he who pays the piper dictates the tune.

It is noteworthy that the APC attempted to portray the project as part of government efforts to strengthen judicial independence. This is an Orwellian irony. Judicial independence is not achieved by the number of buildings commissioned by politicians. Rather, it is measured by institutional autonomy, financial independence, security of tenure, freedom from political pressure and the confidence of citizens that judges are accountable only to the Constitution and the law.

In a political climate where election petitions, constitutional disputes and matters involving powerful government officials are routinely determined by the courts, public officials ought to exercise the highest degree of restraint. They must not position themselves as deserving of judicial gratitude. But, characteristically, APC has chosen to convert a public project into a partisan public relations exercise, thereby undermining the very perception of judicial neutrality that every democracy must zealously protect.

The ADC therefore views this partisan fanfare as a shameless assault on the spirit of separation of powers and an affront to the constitutional ideal of an independent Judiciary. Public institutions must never be transformed into monuments of political patronage or instruments for cultivating judicial gratitude.