Professor Chidi Odinkalu, former Chairman of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), has alleged that the judge who issued an order confining hunger protesters to the Moshood Abiola National Stadium in Abuja hails from the same village as the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike.
Professor Odinkalu argued that Justice S.C. Oriji should have recused himself from the case due to his shared hometown with the FCT Minister. Odinkalu, who currently serves as a Professor of Practice in International Human Rights Law at Tufts University’s Fletcher School, made this claim on Sunday via his X handle.
“I didn’t really want to be the person saying it, but the FCT High Court judge who gave the order to kettle #EndBadGovernanceinNigeria protesters in the Moshood Abiola Stadium just happened to come from the same village as the Minister of the FCT, the plaintiff. Calculate the odds!” Odinkalu wrote.
A review of the FCT High Court website confirmed that Justice Oriji is from Obio/Akpor Local Government Area in Rivers State, the same area as Wike. However, the specific village of the judge was not disclosed on the site.
The situation stems from Wike’s request for a court order to restrict the organizers of hunger protests to the National Stadium, citing concerns over potential lawlessness and chaos if the protests were allowed to spread beyond the stadium. Justice Oriji granted the request, stating that the order was necessary to balance the rights of the protesters with the need to protect public order and property.
