“JUSTICE” A CRY FOR RESTRUCTURING.
I remember Justice Kuti aired "JUDICIARY SHOULD BE FIERCELY INDEPENDENT” (The Guardian 2nd August 2016)
My Question is when
are we going to achieve this?
When will justice, equity,
fairness and the rule of law rule the Nigerian State?
Why can’t judiciary have enough power to execute the
judgment they give?
Is it possible to
achieve justice, checks and balances in a country whose Constitution gave the appointment
of the highest judicial officers to the president on the recommendation of
National Judicial Council subject to the Senate confirmation?
What about the States?
When will they stop interfering in the appointment of judges, their duties and
disobeying judicial orders.?
GOVERNMENT HAS
RENDERED JUDICIARY USELESS IT IS NO LONGER THE HOPE OF COMMON MAN BUT FOR THE
RICH AND MIGHTY.
WHAT EFFRONTERY WILL ANY
JUDGE APPOINTED BY GOVERNMENT USE TO ADMINISTER JUSTICE AND FAIR PLAY ON THOSE
THAT APPOINTED HIM OR HER WHEN THE ISSUES OF OFFICIAL CORRUPTION AND GROSS
MISCONDUCT COMES UP?
Will there not going
to be phone calls from the president, governors and the executives to these
judges ordering them about doing their bidden?
Judiciary can only be
fiercely independent only when they are left alone to practice their trade uninfluenced
by both executives and the legislators and the high and mighty in the society.
National Judicial Council should be left alone, they can do
the appointments or election base on merits, hard works and seniority. It is on
that they can do their work without fear or favour.
I am among those clamouring on the change of this present
Constitution, it is too unreasonable for it concentrated all power on the
president and made him lord of everything.
STATE JUDICIAL COMMISSION are not doing enough monitoring on
the Magistrates and judges that is why some courts are dead, bribery and
corruption being the other of the day they even choose when to come to court
and absent themselves as if they are working without pay.
All over the world court officers are under check to curb the
issue of corruption but that is not true in Nigeria. Every government officer
do what seems good to him or her and that is why the economy is in recess. They
collaborate to engage in corporate stealing and has succeeded in bankrupting
the nation and the nation is going into slavery in borrowing. Imagine World Bank
still advising the nation to further devalue her naira that is already going
dead because we are begging for more loan.
If a registrar of the
court is collecting bribe of course the public will attribute it to the judge
or the magistrate, some say that it is the judge or the magistrate that ordered
them to collect it on their behalf as police station men on the read to do same
for their oga. Lagos State magistrate court registrars are comparing the amount
collected by lawyers in fixing the amount of bribe they want to collect when
doing bail and other issues, that is one of the reason bail has become
difficult and thereby leading to prison congestion and some magistrates are less
perturbed in moving on with hearing talk less of accelerated hearing on those
who have no means of perfecting their bail. Transferring of judges and
magistrates frustrates justice and at times totally destroy it because the case
file lost on transit or abandoned somewhere because the complainants and their
lawyers has not pay the registrar to move the file to the court the judge or magistrate is transferred to.
No judge or magistrate can blame any lawyer for their failure
for as the person of judge and magistrate is, so is the court. No lawyer messes
with a good judge or magistrate. They blame lawyers for frivolous adjournment,
but the judge or magistrate has the inherent power to refuse such frivolities
or at worst give a very shot one if he/she sees good reason for the
adjournment.
Why would a magistrate give two months adjournment
in a matter when like in Lagos State the life span of any case is three months?
Why are Lagos State judiciary not obeying the three month
life span of a case stipulated by the new Magistrate Court Laws of Lagos State? We know it may not be feasible in some matters but some
cases can be disposed of within three
months, giving one month for judgment. Some good magistrates give summary trials
in some cases that are brought before them and they achieve a lot of justice with that for
the court is of summary nature and it helps in quick dispensation of justice
and reduces delays and denials.
WHAT CAN THE JUDICIARY DO TO BE FIERCE, INDEPENDENT AND
ACHIEVE THE RULE OF LAW IF NOT FOUND IN THEIR PERSONALITY DRIVE?
With the current sour taste of judiciary among Nigerians it is time to change the Constitution and cut of the hand of the Executives from appointing and confirming the appointment of the highest seat of justices to eliminate unnecessary undue influence in the execution of their duties after all the Legislators and the Senators chooses their leaders by themselves. Judiciary and the NJC should be left alone, they are the God of justice we have and an evil executive cannot appoint and confirm a good and fierce judge, they will consider those in their cult and clicks.
IT IS TIME TO AMEND NIGERIAN CONSTITUTION TO REFLECT OUR NEW DEMOCRATIC DEVELOPMENT OR ELSE LET EACH REGION GO THEIR SEPARATE WAYS.
