The United Nations (UN) on Monday condemned the suspension of the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Walter Onnoghen by President Muhammadu Buhari, saying it broke international human rights standards on independence of the judiciary and the separation of powers.

Diego Garcia-Sayan, who is mandated by the UN Human Rights Council to investigate legal and judicial independence, said dismissing judges without following legal procedures or offering a chance to contest the decision was incompatible with the independence of the judiciary.

“International human rights standards provide that judges may be dismissed only on serious grounds of misconduct or incompetence.

“Any decision to suspend or remove a judge from office should be fair and should be taken by an independent authority such as a judicial council or a court,” Garcia-Sayan, the UN special rapporteur said in a statement.

The statement further revealed that some of the judges and the defence lawyers involved in Onnoghen’s case had been subjected to serious threats, pressures and interference.

Buhari, who was a military ruler in the 1980s and was voted into office in 2015 suspended Justice Onnoghen on January 25 this year following an order by the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) and replaced him with Justice Ibrahim Tanko Mohammad.

The CJN, who heads the nation’s judiciary could preside over any dispute arising after the declaration of an election result.