A well known American investor, prosperous captain of industry and philanthropist, Warren Buffett once asserted: “It takes 20 years to build a good reputation and five minutes to ruin it.”
In the same vein, an American stateman, author and inventor , Benjamin Franklin stated that; “It takes many good deeds to build a good reputation, and only one bad one to lose it.”. The two prominent Americans seemed to have had Honourable Justice Peter Odo Lifu of the Federal Capital Territory High Court, Ahuja in mind when they separately made the profound statements.
A look at the profile of Justice Peter Lifu who delivered the infamous judgement ordering the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to deregister the African Democratic Congress (ADC), and four other political parties for allegedly failing to meet constitutional requirements for continued excellence in the suit brought before his court by a non-juristic entity, the National Forum of Former Legislators (NFFL) shows that he has been a man of repute in both private and public practice in the past 35 years.
Born in 1965, Justice Peter Lifu from Okpoma, Yala LGA, Cross River State, who was called to the Barr in 1990, worked briefly as junior Counsel at Chief Matthew Adepoju & Co. Chambers in Ibadan in 1991. In 1992, he founded his own private legal firm, Peter Lifu & Co., also in Ibadan. He equally was a lecturer in the Department of Public and International Law at the University of Ibadan.
The bright scholar was appointed as judge of the National Industrial Court in 2013. Subsequently, the same year, he was elevated and transitioned to the bench of the Federal High Court of Nigeria. At the moment, Justice Peter Lifu is a judge of the Federal High Court, Abuja. All things being equal, the Honourable Justice in the next nine years may ascend to be a justice of either the Appeal or Supreme Court. He could have also retired honourably in 2035, given the statutory 70 year retirement age of judges.
Unfortunately, the seeming good reputation, cultivated by Justice Peter Odo Lifu in the past 35 years of his legal career has suddenly blackslided and crashed to the nadir. He was the architect of his nosedive and ruin. How could a high ranking judicial officer succumb to whatever lure, even if it was executive interference, and “act in defiance of an earlier appellate order staying proceedings in the matter, ” he adjudicated on?
Aside restoring the registration of ADC, APP, AA, AP and ZLP, the unanimous decision of the 3-man panel Justices of the Court of Appeal read by Justice Abba Mohammed, was a thorough dress down and verdict of guilt on Justice Peter Lifu. Paragraph by paragraph, the appellate court with credible evidence and hard facts proved the Federal High Court judge wrong on his hasty judgement.
Read this line: “The Court of Appeal described his (Justice Peter Lifu’s) action as “a form of Judicial Impertinence, ” recalling Supreme Court authority that a judge who conducts himself in that manner “is unfit for the bench as the conduct amounts to judicial rascality.”
The Appeal Court Justices deserve commendation for their bold, courageous and exemplary ruling which passes for a landmark judgement. It ought to serve as food for thought for judicial officers, individuals in position of authority, corporate organisations and governments that “reputation is everything” as noted by Mac West, an American actor and comedian.
For Justice Peter Odo Lifu, he should not just wait for the National Judicial Council (NJC) to try him to avoid a second indictment and further opprobrium. This is the time for him to bow out.
Uzoma Isiakpu is a Public Relations Consultant.
