SARAKI'S CCT TRIAL: FINALLY, GROUP OF LAWYERS DRAG FG TO COURT, TACKLES AGF

Angered by the nauseating and ignoble manner the CCT Chairman is descending into the arena of conflict in the ongoing trial of the Senate President, Dr. Saraki, a group of Lawyers have today dragged the Federal Government to the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja this afternoon to declare void some repugnant sections of the Administration of Criminal Justice, Act, passed into law in 2015. 



The suit is marked FHC/ABJ/CS/274/16. The sections of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act being challenged provide as follows;

Section 306 “An application for stay of proceedings in respect of a criminal matter before the Court shall not be entertained.”
Section 396 subsections (3), (4) and (5) read thus;
“Upon arraignment the trial of the defendant shall proceed from day-to-day until the conclusion of the trial”
“Where day-to-day trial is impracticable after arraignment, no party shall be entitled to more than five adjournments from arraignment to final judgment:
Provided always that the interval between each adjournment shall not exceed fourteen working days”
“Where it is impracticable to conclude a criminal proceeding after the parties have exhausted their five adjournments each, the interval between one adjournment to another shall not exceed seven days inclusive of weekends.” 

In the ORIGINATING SUMMONS initiating the suit, the group raised one question for the determination of the court thus;

"Whether the provisions of sections 306 and 396 subsections (3), (4) and (5) of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, 2015 are not unconstitutional having regard to the combined provisions of Sections 1(1) and (3), 4(5), 6(6) (a), and 36(1) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended) and the decision of the Nigerian Supreme Court in Unongo v. Aku (1983) vol 13 NSCC; (1983) LPELR-3422(SC)?"
Depending on the answer the court may give to the above question, the group is seeking the following orders from the court;

"1. A DECLARATION that the provisions of Sections 306 and 396 (3), (4) and (5) of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, 2015 are in conflict with the combined provisions of sections 1(1) & (3), 4 (5), 6(6) (a), 36 (1) Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended)

2. AN ORDER OF THIS HONOURABLE COURT striking down and declaring void Sections 306 and 396 subsections (3), (4) and (5) of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, 2015 for being in conflict and constituting a grave affront to the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. 

3. ANY OTHER ORDER OR ORDERS that this Honourable Court may deem fit to make in the entire circumstances.

In the affidavit accompanying the Originating Summons, the Deponent avers that;
10. In my participations in the ongoing criminal proceedings against many Defendants standing criminal trials in Federal Courts in Abuja, the impugned provisions of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, 2015, being challenged before this Honourable Court have always been invoked and relied on by the prosecution to the grave detriment of the Defendants standing trial.

13. The conduct of the 2nd and 3rd Defendants in enacting the provisions being challenged herein constitutes a grave affront on our grund-norm and threatens our Constitutional order.

14. Being a Minister in the Temple of Justice, I share in the sacred burden of pointing out infractions and abuses of our Constitution to this Honourable Court.

15. If this Court does not swiftly intervene to pronounce on the Constitutionality or otherwise of these impugned provisions of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, 2015, hasty proceedings resulting from the application of the impugned provisions would continue to sprinkle the ashes of raw injustice on defendants standing criminal trials in our Courts.

16. Time is indeed of the essence of this Originating Summons in that the fate of many people standing criminal trials in our Federal Courts are continuously being decided by the application of these impugned provisions of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act.

The Group, while referring to the decision of the Nigerian Supreme Court in the case of Unongo v. Aku (1983) vol 13 NSCC; (1983) LPELR-3422(SC), argues that "The powers of the courts to grant adjournments, stay of proceedings where and when necessary and the powers to control their internal proceedings are inherent in the courts and preserved by the constitution itself and can therefore never be legislated away by an act of the National Assembly. Sections 306, 396(3), (4) and (5) are therefore void." They further argued that "A court of general jurisdiction, whether named in the Constitution or established in pursuance of the provisions of the Constitution, cannot be directed, controlled, or impeded in its functions by any of the other departments of the government."
"Any act by which the legislature attempts to hamper judicial functions or interfere with the discharge of judicial duties is unconstitutional and void. The principles above enunciated have been applied to statutes undertaking to fix the time within which courts shall act in certain cases or matter"
 See details on this link:
http://www.nairaland.com/3059678/sarakis-cct-trial-finally-group