MONROVIA — Mr. Ndubuisi Nwabudike has applied to be Chairman of the Liberia Anti-Corruption Commission (LACC) but though he has settled the embarrassing issue of his citizenship that saw him resign from the same post, the Supreme Court of Liberia says attaining a Liberian citizenship does not automatically restore him as member of the Supreme Court bar.
By Lennart Dodoo, [email protected]
Having formalized his citizenship as a Liberian at Criminal Court ‘B’, Nwabudike wrote the Supreme Court of Liberia informing the Court of his citizenship and the reassumption of his roles and functions of as a member of the Supreme Court Bar.
However, to his dismay, Chief Justice Sie-A-Nyene Youh informed him that the actions taken to regularize his citizenship does not automatically restore him as Counsellor-at-Law. She mandated that a formal application has to be filed before the full bench of the Supreme Court for the restoration of his status as a Counsellor of the Supreme Court Bar.
How His Woes Began
Nwadubike’s woes began when he was nominated by President Weah as Chairman of the National Elections Commission – a nomination that brought a lot of questioning to his citizenship. Prior to that nomination, he had served as Chairman of the Governance Commission and the LACC under the Weah administration.
Known to be a Nigerian, Nwabudike could not prove his Liberian citizenship during the confirmation hearing as his naturalization papers, date of birth, and references were all contradictory. He told Senators then that he naturalized as a Liberian in 1982 at the age of 16, arguing that he was accompanied by an adult, something the country’s alien and naturalization law does allow since an applicant must be 21.
However, he had earlier told the Daily Observer newspaper in an exclusive interview that he naturalized in 1988, after he moved to Liberia in June of 1988, the same year he purportedly completed his undergraduate studies in Nigeria.
He submitted to the Senate passports bearing different dates of birth, while his school records from the University of Liberia had another birthdate completely different from the passports.
A photocopy of what he claimed was his naturalization certificate was also submitted but with no resident permit number — a document every naturalized citizen must first obtain before applying for citizenship.
Court and Immigration officials testified that the self-proclaimed naturalized Liberian was not a Liberian as he has claimed. There were no records at Criminal Court ‘B’ to authenticate that he was naturalized in 1982 as claimed.
Long Term Woes
Legal sources have tipped FrontPageAfrica that Nwabudike might not be restored as a member of the Supreme Court Bar since his Liberian citizenship was obtained only about a fortnight ago.
According to the lawyer who asked for anonymity, one must have practiced for five years before applying to the Supreme Court Bar. However, to practice law in Liberia, you must be a Liberian citizen. “This means, you must be a Liberian citizen who has at least five years of practice before filling an application. So, if he just obtained his Liberian citizenship two weeks, ago, it means all the years he practiced as a lawyer in Liberia were illegal and cannot be considered by the Supreme Court. In addition to that, if he just obtained his Liberian citizenship, it means he robbed the Louis Arthur Grimes School of Law. The fee for foreign students is different from the fees for Liberian citizens. If he fraudulently enrolled as a Liberian student, whereas, he was a Nigerian, then, he needs to be investigated by the law school and remit all the balance on his tuition.”