In a bold rebuttal to recent allegations, renowned human rights lawyer and Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Femi Falana, has dared the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, to report him to the Legal Practitioners’ Disciplinary Committee (LPDC) over his public commentary on the Supreme Court’s judgment concerning the ongoing political crisis in Rivers State.
Falana, in a statement titled “I Did Not Lie Against the Supreme Court of Nigeria” issued on Sunday, described Wike’s accusations as “spurious and tendentious in every material particular,” accusing the minister of seeking to incite the apex court against him over a matter still pending before the Federal High Court in Port Harcourt.
The controversy began when Wike, during a press briefing in Abuja, accused Falana of misrepresenting the Supreme Court’s ruling on national television regarding the defection of 27 members of the Rivers State House of Assembly from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC). Wike alleged that Falana’s remarks could trigger political unrest, stating, “If someone of Femi Falana’s calibre can go on national television and lie, it’s very serious. Lies can cause a lot of crises.”
Unfazed, Falana responded by asserting his constitutional right to critique judicial decisions, citing Section 39 of the 1999 Constitution and Article 9 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights. “My fundamental right to criticise the decisions of courts is guaranteed…,” he affirmed, adding that he had not misrepresented the Supreme Court’s verdict but only observed that the issue of defection was raised suo motu by the court.
Providing further clarity, Falana pointed to both video evidence and sworn affidavits by the lawmakers affirming their defection from PDP to APC. He emphasized that such actions should result in the automatic forfeiture of their legislative seats, citing precedents in Attorney-General of the Federation v. Abubakar and Abegunde v. Ondo State House of Assembly.
Turning the spotlight on Wike’s political track record, Falana accused the FCT Minister of habitual judicial attacks whenever court rulings don’t favor his interests. “Unlike Mr. Wike, who calls judges names whenever they disagree with his politics of opportunism, I have always criticised the judgments of domestic and regional courts with utmost decorum and in good faith,” he said.
He backed his position with historical judicial reflections, including the famous words of the late Justice Chukwudifu Oputa: “We are final not because we are infallible; rather, we are infallible because we are final.” He also cited former Chief Justice of Nigeria, Ibrahim Tanko Muhammad, who urged the legal community to speak up when the judiciary errs.
Daring Wike to take formal action, Falana stated, “Since he has become the unsolicited defender of the judiciary, I challenge him to report me to the Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee for professional misconduct.”
He concluded by brushing off Wike’s attempts to discredit him, saying, “It is indubitably clear that the allegation leveled against me by Mr. Wike is spurious… He has failed in his desperate bid to incite the Justices of the Supreme Court against me without any basis whatsoever.”
In a final swipe, Falana dismissed Wike’s derogatory label of him as “a television lawyer,” retorting, “Mr. Wike is the only life bencher in Nigeria who has never handled a case in any trial court or appellate court.”
Adding a sting of wit, Falana concluded, “It is no crime if a lawyer loses a case in any court. Only a corrupt lawyer wins all cases in all courts.”