By Sufuyan Ojeifo
The Bench cannot sit in judgement of the law while standing outside it.
In a nation where the rule of law is ostensibly the bedrock of democracy, the allegations that the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, John Terhemba Tsoho, has operated undeclared bank accounts in blatant violation of the Code of Conduct for Judicial Officers is nothing short of a seismic betrayal.
This is not mere administrative oversight. It is not a filing error. It is a calculated affront to the principles of transparency and accountability that Nigerians demand from their custodians of justice.
The findings, unearthed by a meticulous investigation by Premium Times, paint a picture of judicial hubris that must not be tolerated. Justice Tsoho must resign immediately, and the statutory bodies entrusted with upholding the law, namely the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB), the National Judicial Council (NJC), and anti-corruption agencies, must enforce the letter of the law without delay or favour. Anything less would mock the very ethos of Nigerian jurisprudence, where the scales of justice are meant to balance without the weight of personal impunity.
The facts as uncovered are damning enough. On 29 April 2024, Justice Tsoho submitted his asset declaration form to the CCB, a requirement of all public officers to guard against corruption’s insidious creep. Yet, in this document, he omitted several bank accounts.
These are not trifling omissions. They represent a direct breach of Section 15 of the Code of Conduct Bureau and Tribunal Act, which mandates full disclosure of all properties, assets, and liabilities.
It is worth repeating that this is not a clerical oversight. It is not a procedural error that can be blamed on a hapless clerk somewhere. It is a direct affront to the legal architecture that underpins public trust in the Nigerian state. And it demands an immediate and unequivocal response.
It has to be said once again without equivocation: Justice Tsoho must resign.
Not eventually. Not after endless procedural hedging. Not after opaque internal deliberations conducted behind the protective curtains of judicial bureaucracy. He must resign now, because the continued occupancy of his office under the shadow of such grave infractions inflicts daily damage on the credibility of the judiciary itself.
And to avoid any misunderstanding, let it be plainly stated here that this is not about presumption of guilt. It is about preservation of institutional integrity. We shall return to this later.
Moreover, if we are being honest, Nigeria has seen this film before. It did not end well then, and it will not end well now because the law is unequivocal: any false statement in such declarations constitutes a violation, and undeclared assets are presumed unlawfully acquired unless proven otherwise through legitimate income, gifts, or lawfully obtained loans.
Justice Tsoho’s silence in the face of repeated queries from investigative journalists is deeply troubling. Silence in such circumstances inevitably erodes public confidence.
● The Ghost of Onnoghen
Nigeria does not lack precedent in this matter. The parallels with Walter Samuel Nkanu Onnoghen are unmistakable. In 2019, Nigeria’s sitting Chief Justice was removed from office after being convicted by the Code of Conduct Tribunal for failing to declare certain bank accounts.
The lesson from that episode was meant to be unambiguous. No judicial officer, however senior, stands above the law. To now tolerate a similar scenario involving another judicial head without decisive action would amount to institutional hypocrisy of the most damaging kind.
It would signal that accountability in Nigeria is selective. That enforcement depends not on law, but on convenience. That rules exist for enforcement against some, but accommodation for others.
Such a signal would be devastating. Because judicial authority rests on moral authority. Courts do not command armies. They do not possess economic power. Their authority rests on something more fragile and more profound: Trust.
When a judge speaks, citizens comply not because they fear coercion, but because they believe in the legitimacy of the institution speaking through him. This legitimacy is not automatic. It is earned and sustained through visible adherence to the highest ethical standards.
The moment that adherence is credibly questioned, judicial authority begins to erode. Lawyers begin to question rulings privately. Citizens begin to doubt outcomes publicly. The perception of neutrality weakens. Cynicism spreads.
Eventually, the institution itself becomes diminished. Nigeria cannot afford such erosion.
The Federal High Court, under Justice Tsoho’s stewardship, handles some of the nation’s most sensitive cases, from electoral disputes to anti-corruption trials. How can Nigerians trust verdicts from a bench led by a man who flouts the very codes designed to ensure probity? The hypocrisy is stark; it undermines the moral authority that judges must wield to command respect in a society grappling with endemic graft.
● The Unaffordable Cost of Silence
The responsibility now shifts decisively to Nigeria’s statutory accountability bodies.
The Code of Conduct Bureau must act without hesitation or favour. Its mandate exists precisely for moments such as this. It must initiate a transparent investigation, free from political influence or institutional timidity.
The National Judicial Council must likewise discharge its constitutional responsibility with urgency and clarity. Judicial discipline is not optional. It is the mechanism through which the judiciary protects itself from internal decay.
Delay would be interpreted, correctly, as protection. And protection would be interpreted, correctly, as complicity. And complicity in the face of such a devastating scandal bears an unaffordable cost to the Nigerian judiciary as an institution.
Nigeria has suffered too long from a culture where institutions hesitate to enforce the law against their own senior members. This culture has done incalculable damage to public confidence in governance. It must end here.
● Resignation is not admission of guilt. It Is recognition of responsibility
Now, we return to a persistent misunderstanding in Nigerian public life. Resignation is often seen as a confession. Let us be exceedingly clear: it is not.
Resignation, in circumstances such as this, is an act of institutional preservation. It protects the office from the reputational damage attached to the office holder. It allows investigations to proceed without institutional contamination. It demonstrates respect for the system. It affirms that no individual is more important than the institution he serves.
Justice Tsoho may ultimately contest the allegations. He may present explanations. He may seek to clear his name. That is his right. But he cannot credibly do so while simultaneously presiding over the very judicial structure whose integrity is now in question. That duality is untenable. Resignation is the only responsible course.
●The greater implication for Nigeria
Nigeria’s struggle with corruption is not merely a struggle against theft. It is a struggle against impunity. Impunity is the belief that rules apply to others but not to oneself. It is the quiet assumption that status confers exemption. It is the cancer that weakens states from within.
Nigeria’s progress depends on dismantling this belief, especially at the highest levels of public authority.
This moment presents a test: A test of whether Nigeria’s institutions exist to enforce the law or merely to recite it.
A test of whether accountability is real or rhetorical. A test of whether the judiciary is willing to hold itself to the standards it demands of others.
The answer must be unmistakable.
Once again, for the avoidance of doubt, Justice Tsoho must resign.
The Code of Conduct Bureau must act now.
The National Judicial Council must act now.
The law must be obeyed not selectively, not symbolically, but fully and faithfully.
Nigeria’s judiciary cannot afford ambiguity. Its authority depends on clarity.
And right now, clarity requires Justice Tsoho’s resignation.
● Sufuyan Ojeifo is a journalist and publisher of THE CONCLAVE online newspaper. www.theconclaveng.com
