Friday, November 5, 2010

Justice and the Judiciary


The policies of the All Progressives Grand Alliance on Justice and the Judiciary will be based upon the following cardinal principles.

i. Defence of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as the supreme law which prescribes a limit to the exercise of power by all persons and institutions;

ii. Maintenance of the independence of the Judiciary and the promotion of the principle of the separation of powers as enshrined in the constitution;

iii. The equality before the law of all persons resident in the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the insistence that justice, equity, due process, human rights, and social justice should be available to all.

It is generally admitted that Nigeria has a brilliant Bar. But the administration of justice has often left much to be desired. The infrastructure of unventilated old court buildings, far too few in number and under-equipped in facilities; poor transport, manual transcription of evidence, and poor support services have not helped speedy administration of justice. And there is an attitude, especially with regard to criminal cases, that our treatment of offenders is not a matter of tremendous importance.

In addition, the pay and conditions of service of judicial officers are not sufficiently competitive as to attract star preformers and ambitious advocates to the bench. Appointments have often been treated as benefactions distributed on the basis of favouritism, political influence and a mistaken interpretation of the Federal Character rule. Not surprisingly, legal scholarship, firmness of character, discipline, integrity and exemplary character have been on the decline among magistrates and judges. Corruption has been authoritatively commented on notably by the Justice Kayode Eso Reports. It is generally believed that Federal and State executives are able to exert undue influence in the course of justice. At the same time, the standard of legal education has been falling with devastating consequences especially in the lower ranks of the bench.

To redress these situations. The All Progressives Grand Alliance will implement the following policies:

i. APGA will take every step to safeguard the independence of the judiciary and the Judicial Service Commission in the appointment, conditions of service, discipline, and tenure of judicial officers. It is important to ensure that the judiciary is extricated from executive influence and that, as far as possible judges, are insulated from the pressure of the Executive through such matters as their housing, courtrooms, transportation, personal security and welfare. The budget of the Judiciary will continue to be funded from the Consolidated Revenue Fund.

ii. Legal qualifications will he important yardstick in all legal recruitments made under the APGA government. Second Class Honours at the LL.B will be the minimum acceptable certificate and preference will be given to lawyers who have postgraduate qualifications or have displayed scholarship through publications and conference papers. Continuing legal education for judges will he promoted In this regard the work of the National judicial Institute will be encouraged and greatly increased.

iii. The scrutiny of the moral character and background of prospective appointees to the bench and to other judicial offices will he undertaken as a regular routine. Laws which give corrupt judges any form of immunity from prosecution or restrict in any way the full application of the law to them will he abolished. The present government is already moving in this direction.

iv. The remuneration and conditions of service of judicial officers must he raised to make the judiciary attractive to brilliant and ambitious members of the Bar. It is of the utmost importance that the best available talent should enter the services and that adequate retirement benefits be guaranteed to minimize temptation.

v. APGA will greatly increase the number of judges and magistrates, undertake the building of new court houses, and upgrade support systems in order to expedite the hearing of cases. The enormous delays which occur presently form the basis of the saying that justice delayed is justice denied.

vi. APGA will introduce vocational training within the prison system and promote the rehabilitation of released prisoners partly on the basis of humane consideration and partly to minimize recidivism in Nigerian prisons.

vii. A highly professionalized Police Force that is adequately remunerated and decentralized in matters of safety of live and property would be put in place by APGA. APGA believes that an effective police force is a highly desirable requirement for an effective judiciary.

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