The Court of Appeal in Abuja has granted approval for an out-of-court settlement between the federal government and former Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Walter Onnoghen, over his removal from office.
The decision was reached during Thursday’s proceedings, where both parties informed the court of their ongoing efforts to resolve the dispute amicably.
Justice Onnoghen was removed as the CJN in 2019 by then-President Muhammadu Buhari, following charges brought against him at the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) for false asset declaration.
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At Thursday’s hearing, Onnoghen’s lead counsel, Dr. Ogwu Onoja, informed the three-man panel of justices that discussions between the parties were ongoing, with recent engagements occurring as recently as Wednesday, September 18.
He expressed optimism that a peaceful resolution would be achieved and requested a one-month adjournment to finalize the settlement.
Counsel for the federal government, Tijani Gazali, confirmed the efforts towards an amicable settlement and supported the request for an adjournment.
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Gazali emphasized that both parties were committed to settling the matter outside the courtroom.
Justice J.O. Oyewole, who presided over the session, instructed the parties to document and file the terms of their settlement once an agreement is reached.
The court will then adopt the settlement as its final judgement in the case.
Justice Oyewole set November 4 as the next hearing date to allow time for the conclusion of the negotiations.
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Onnoghen was initially prosecuted by the federal government in 2019 for failing to declare several assets, leading to his conviction by the CCT.
He was removed from office and ordered to forfeit the undeclared assets to the government.
In the current appeal, Onnoghen is seeking to overturn the CCT’s judgement, which led to his removal and the forfeiture of his bank accounts.
He was not present at the Thursday proceedings.
