The court order against Lt Gen Yahaya Faruk, the chief of the army staff, and other leaders of the nation’s security services has been criticized by the Coalition for Truth and Justice, or CTJ.
The group warned the judiciary against using specific legal declarations against security officials to make Nigeria look foolish in front of the international community.
Barrister Timothy Charles, the organization’s national president, argued that judicial rulings against security chiefs made a mockery of the legal system.
At a press conference on Friday in Abuja, Charles voiced his opposition to such declarations and cautioned that it might cause chaos in the nation and divert security agencies from their tasks.
He said: “A situation where various courts in the country would issue orders remanding heads of security agencies in prison custody is indeed a mockery of our judicial system.
“The judicial arm of government must come to terms with the reality on the ground to understand that such actions can heat the polity and make the country a laughing stock before the international community.”
In recent time, courts have ordered the imprisonment of the Inspector General of Police, Baba-Ahmed, and the Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Abdulrasheed Bawa.
Also, a Federal High Court in Minna, Niger State, had ordered the arrest of COAS.
However, Charles said the court order against COAS was worrisome and embarrassing.
“Our considered opinion is that it is an invitation for chaos; the judicial arm of government must be circumspect in issuing orders that amount to a systematic embarrassment of the Office of the Chief of Army Staff,” he said.
