By Ikechukwu Nnochiri
The alarming rate of the perversion of justice in Nigeria and the angst of the Chief Justice of Nigeria, CJN, Justice Dahiru Musdapher, and Chief Judge of the Federal Capital Territory High Court, Justice Lawal Gunmi, is presented in this report. Their positions are corroborated by the observations of the Nigeria Bar Association, NBA.
Justice according to John Rawls is the first virtue of social institutions, as truth is of systems of thought! Virtue connotes a positive trait or quality deemed to be morally good and therefore valued as a foundation of principle.
The opposite of virtue is “vice,” which unfortunately has permeated the hallowed chambers of the judicial temples in the country.
Whereas “Boni judicis est ampliare justitiam,” is a Latin maxim that says “It is the duty of a good judge to make precedents which amplify justice,” “Nulli vendemus, nulli negabimus, aut differemus rectum vel justitian,” means “we will sell to none, we will deny to none, we will delay to none, either equity or justice.”
It is no longer news that several well meaning judicial egg-heads in the country had in recent times, raised alarm over the depreciating standard of justice administration in the country.
Primarily, the judiciary ought to be the bastion of hope for the common man, however, where even the common man expresses reservation in the ability of the so called “custodians of the law”, to guarantee him free and fair judgment, indeed, takes the national flag to half mast.
Little wonder why the Chief Justice of Nigeria, CJN, Justice Dahiru Musdapher, in a speech he delivered at the National Judicial Institute, NJI, on May 7, stressed that some judges in the country lack “integrity, honesty, knowledge of the law, willingness to listen, sense of fair play, patience and humility.” All these from the CJN!
Though this allegation, coming from the number one judicial officer in the country, succinctly captured the sorry state our justice sector wallows in presently, it is further worrisome that the hidden skeletons in our jurisprudence is being laid bare by foreign judicial authorities.
A classical example was the case of the former governor of Delta State, Chief James Ibori, who was declared innocent at home and found guilty abroad on the same sets of primary facts.
Justice Ayo Salami and Justice Aloysius Katsina Alu
However, should we really castigate the actors in our judicial landscape or should we blame the environment within which they work? Could the Judge that freed the convicted ex-governor have acted otherwise, taking into cognizance the fact that the Nigerian judiciary is only independent when it comes to a judge choosing the colour of shoe to wear to court? Who okays the remuneration of Judges? What was the status of the accused person in the administration of that time?
Nevertheless, is there any justification for judges that pervert the course of justice to favour a crony? I say NO! It is an elementary maxim in law that “Justitia non novit patrem nec matrem; solum verrtatem spectat justitia,” implying that Justice knows neither father nor mother but looks to the truth alone.
Except our judges enthrone the principle of “Quod ad jus nattrale attinet omnes homines aequales sunt, meaning “All men are equal as far as the natural law is concerned,” our legal system will continue to suffer intense bashing abroad.
Addressing judges that came for the conference at the NJI, the CJN, who never ceases to express his concern over the state of the nation’s judicial system, said: “as your lordships are aware, the Code of Conduct for Judicial Officers is divided into Rules 1 to 3. Rule 1 deal with the avoidance of impropriety and the appearance of impropriety in all the activities of a judicial officer and Rule 2 deals with the adjudicative and administrative duties of a judicial officer. Finally, Rule 3 provides guidelines that regulate the extra-judicial activities of a judicial officer in order to maximize the risk of conflict with the duties of his office.
“It then follows that judicial officers must imbibe all the essential qualities of a good judge such as integrity, honesty, knowledge of the law, willingness to listen, empathy, sense of fair play, patience and humility. These and many more are the hallmarks of a good judge. These attributes are sadly lacking amongst some judges and generally in Nigeria’s public life.
“Therefore, if any of these standards are detracted from, the high regard in which a judge is held within the society is diminished, and the likelihood of his pronouncements to be viewed with utmost levity by the public is undoubted, thereby making him unfit for that exalted position in the hallowed chambers of justice. My lords, if the provisions of the Code of Conduct for Judicial Officers are obeyed to the letter, we would not be battling to extricate the judiciary from some of the rot and prevailing iniquities which it has unfortunately enmeshed itself in.”
Accentuating the stance of the CJN, the Chief Judge of the Federal Capital Territory High Court, Justice Lawal Gunmi, who spoke at the commissioning of the International Centre for Arbitration and Mediation, (ICAMA), on May 8, blamed the dwindling state of foreign investment in the country on insidious level of corruption in the judiciary, insisting that our justice sector ranked among the worst in the world.
Justice Gunmi, stressed that lack of timely, predictable and affordable access to justice was having negative toll on the confidence both citizens and foreigners have in the Nigerian judiciary.
He said: “Unfortunately, many developing and transition countries, including Nigeria, rank poorly in the area of the efficiency of formal justice systems.
“Lack of timely, predictable and affordable access to justice has a negative effect on the business climate because it increases risks for local and foreign. Experience has shown that serious businesses are reluctant to put money into an economy where safety of their investment cannot be protected. This protection includes judicial intervention when disputes arise; obviously, most of these businesses cannot afford to join the waiting list in our courts and thus is where a centre like this comes in handy.”
Remarkably, it was not only these two senior members of the “Bench” that have made such allegations. It would also be recalled that the Nigerian Bar Association, NBA, had on February 17, vowed to expose how politicians used “consultants” to buy election cases with “incredible sums of money.”
The legal body which made the allegation at a valedictory court session that was held in honour of late Justice Anthony Nnaemezie Christopher Aniagolu, said it was aware of all the senior counsel and eminent retired judicial officers that served as conduit between election courts and parties in electoral matters, saying it would forward their names to relevant anti-graft agencies for prosecution.
In the a speech that was presented by its national legal adviser, Chief J.B Daudu, SAN, NBA, said: “Corruption is now a live issue that is threatening to tear apart the foundations and fabric of the society. The Bar believes that as it does not possess the machinery and infrastructure to battle this scourge such as the EFCC and ICPC possesses, but it can be proactive in its battle against this vice which left unchecked will sink the whole ship of state.
“We are no doubt aware that some of our colleagues including very senior counsel and at times eminent retired judicial officers go about offering their services as ‘consultants’ particularly in election cases for incredible sums of money so as to act as conduit between his client and the election court.
“The end result is to facilitate ready-made justice for the persons they are acting for. We must strongly deprecate this practice. Our members and members of the public should feel free to avail themselves of the services of this NBA anti-corruption body. We do ourselves the greatest disservice if we fail to fight this ill which renders irrelevant the work and skills of hardworking lawyers who daily toil in and out of courts and who do not have the advantage of knowing with certainty the outcomes of cases as these ‘consultants’ are privileged to know.
“Secondly, this charge falls at the feet of the Bar particularly counsel who for political manoeuvres or the gratification of ‘varying interests’ misuse the process of the Supreme Court and other courts by bringing applications that are clearly frivolous or contemptuous.
“I have approached the Attorney-General of the Federation to call a meeting of the General Council of the Bar so that inter alia, the existing rules of Professional Ethics can be amended to include such areas that will safeguard the dignity of the courts and integrity of judicial process. Let us call ourselves to order in this regard. The essence of a just judicial system is to provide prompt qualitative justice for the people. Justice is meaningless when it is delayed, hurried or perverted”, it stressed.
Aside the realm of rhetoric, the pertinent question remains, what can be done to cure our judiciary? And my answers are: “Fiat justitia, ruat coelum” (Let right be done, though the heavens fall), “Nihil magis justum est quam quod necessarium est. (Nothing is more just than what is necessary).
SOURCE: Vanguard Newspaper, 13 May 2012. http://www.vanguardngr.com/
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