Nigeria’s rapidly growing economy needs functional judiciary —Tinubu
Nigeria needs a functional justice system that will support its rapidly growing economy, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu said yesterday.
According to him, reforms were urgently needed to restore confidence in the system.
He spoke in Abuja while opening a two-day National Summit on Justice 2024.
It was organised by the Federal Ministry of Justice with support from the National Judicial Council (NJC), the European Union (EU), the International IDEA, the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) and the United Nations Office on Drug and Crime (UNODC).
Senate President Godswill Akpabio said the legislature was aware of the challenges of delays and backlogs plaguing the courts and would address them.
He called for reforms to eliminate interlocutory appeals and measures to prevent the increasing abuse of ex-parte orders.
Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Olukayode Ariwoola, called for a holistic reform of the justice system, including tackling corruption.
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Attorney-General of the Federation Prince Lateef Fagbemi (SAN) said the Federal Government was developing draft constitution amendment bills to enhance access to justice and its administration.
President Tinubu, represented by Vice President Kashim Shettima, said security and other challenges present the justice sector institutions with an opportunity to push for reforms.
He said a key challenge for all justice sector institutions is to address the general feeling of frustration that the system is unresponsive to the needs of Nigerians.
President Tinubu said: “The reality is that there is an urgent need for a functional justice system capable of supporting a rapidly growing economy, guaranteeing basic human and political rights of individuals and providing security and justice to all.
“This makes continuous reforms imperative. It further underlines the establishment of reliable metrics and benchmarks across all justice sector institutions in order to identify the needed system changes and evaluate the effect of reform measures.
“The impact of your reform efforts should be visible in terms of improved access to justice, strengthened the integrity of justice sector institutions, increased timeliness and quality of justice delivery, accountability and transparency of the system, and ultimately, improved public trust and confidence in the judicial system.
“I, therefore, urge you all to use the platform to identify and seek solutions to gaps in the regulatory, operational and institutional challenges that have long inhibited justice sector institutions from delivering on their mandates.
“I demand informed and coordinated responses to the identified challenges clogging the effectiveness and efficiency of the sector.
“I demand performance so that Nigerians can see and acknowledge the impact of your reform efforts.
“Ultimately, the expectations are that law and justice should aim to ensure public safety, economic development, peaceful coexistence and the wellbeing of our people.”
The President called on justice sector institutions and professionals to align their activities with the tenets of our Renewed Hope Agenda, particularly as it relates to the priorities on inclusivity, fairness, rule of law and anti-corruption stance.
“The present administration has pledged to govern impartially and ensure adherence to these constitutional principles.
“Justice sector leaders and professionals need to find the right responses to the challenges we face through policy innovation, citizens-centred reforms, system change and legislative reform, where necessary.
“I urge the leadership of all justice sector institutions to seek a new direction and focus on how to create a justice system that fully responds to the needs of our citizens, one that serves Nigeria now and for generations to come,” the President said.
He noted that his administration has made the funding of the Judiciary and other justice sector institutions a top priority.
Actions taken to boost justice administration, he said, include the signing of the bill on uniformity in the retirement age of judges of the superior courts, the recruitment of more Justices to ensure the Supreme Court attained its full complement of 21 Justices and the increase in budgetary allocation to the judiciary.
“To further improve the welfare of our judicial officers, I have approved a substantial increase in the salaries and emoluments of judges, which is currently undergoing legislative action,” the president added.
Akpabio: stop abuse of ex-parte orders
Akpabio assured that the legislative arm would do all within its capacity to address the challenges hampering the effectiveness of the justice system.
The Senate President said: “We must try and curb the misuse of ex parte orders in political cases by our judges.
“To curb it, it is imperative that the National Judicial Council (NJC) exercises stringent oversight.
“We recommend prompt and decisive punishment for judges who are found to abuse their authority in this manner.
“We further propose that the NJC establish clear and detailed standards governing the issuance of ex parte orders, accompanied by a defined set of sanctions for violations.
“These sanctions should be severe enough to serve as a deterrent against future abuses
“We recommend that the NJC should conduct regular audits and reviews of ex parte orders issued by judges to ensure compliance with established standards.
“This proactive approach will help in identifying patterns of abuse early and in administering corrective measures promptly.
“In addition to punitive measures, we also emphasise the importance of ongoing training and education for judges on the ethical and responsible use of judicial discretion in issuing ex parte orders.”
Akpabio added that it was essential to also reform the approach to interlocutory appeals in civil cases.
“Currently, these appeals often cause unnecessary delays, prolonging litigation and burdening our courts.
“As was done in the criminal jurisprudence during the enactment of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act 2015, we propose that all appeals in civil cases should be taken only after the conclusion of the substantive case.”
