Human rights lawyer, Femi Falana, has accused the Federal Government and Senate President Godswill Akpabio of undermining the rule of law.
In a strongly worded statement, Falana alleged that both the government and powerful individuals have been brazenly disregarding court judgments, warning that such actions threaten the very foundation of democracy.
He particularly criticized the Senate under Akpabio’s leadership, describing it as one of the most notorious institutions in flouting judicial orders.
Falana cited several examples, including:
The case of Comrade Tajudeen Baruwa, re-elected as NURTW President in August 2023, whose victory was upheld by both the National Industrial Court and the Court of Appeal. Despite these rulings, Baruwa was forcefully removed from office to pave the way for the installation of Oluomo as union president.
In May 2024, when the Federal Government sued the 36 states over local government control, the Supreme Court affirmed local government autonomy and ordered direct allocation of funds to the 774 councils. According to Falana, this ruling has been treated with “utter contempt” by the FG.
The case of Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, suspended by the Senate in March 2025. Although a Federal High Court declared the suspension illegal and ordered her reinstatement, the Senate ignored the judgment and went further by converting the six-month suspension into an indefinite one.
Falana urged President Bola Tinubu to take immediate steps to halt what he described as an “inexorable descent into anarchy and chaos,” even suggesting the President suspend his vacation to address the matter.
He also challenged the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) to rise to the occasion, recalling how the association, under Alao Aka-Bashorun in 1987, boycotted courts to compel compliance with a single court order during the Babangida regime. He stressed that the NBA’s duty is even greater now under a democratic dispensation.
The human rights lawyer lamented that election riggers now openly mock aggrieved citizens by daring them to “go to court,” since judicial outcomes have become predictable.