Politics

2023: The judiciary on trial

THE judiciary, as the third arm of government, is key to the stability of a democracy. Some legal luminaries and other professionals have continued to examine such role as the march towards the 2023 continues, reports KUNLE ODEREMI.

ABOUT five years and 176 days in office, the Chief of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Tanko Muhammad relinquished the exalted office on Monday. His exit from office premised on health reasons, is a sharp contrast to the tradition in this part of the world where many would want to cling to high public offices even at the point of death or ignominy. More curious about the resignation of Muhammad are the shades and forms of views triggered by his action. Much of such variegated strong views and opinions have been expressed by lawyers. All these developments are coming against the background of the recent correspondence by 14 Justices of the Supreme Court over the state of affairs in the judiciary, which elicited a spontaneous counter statement by the CJN to clarify the predicament of the arm of government under the prevailing economic atmosphere in the country since the Supreme Court was no island.

In eight months, Nigerians are expected to go to the polls to elect another set of leaders that will steer the ship of state for another four years. The political space has been abuzz with preparations for the elections beginning from the presidential poll on February 25, 2023. The preparations have not been devoid of hiccups, acrimony and bitterness among political gladiators in the leading political parties, especially over the process for the choice of candidates for the general election. Where aggrieved party members do not repose confidence in the mechanism for conflict resolution in their parties or are not satisfied with the handling of their matter by such internal organ, the concerned party members resort to the judiciary for adjudication. The importance of this arm of government is further reinforced by fact of history that from 1999, some governors and lawmakers were products of judicial pronouncements, especially by the Supreme Court. Besides, evidence abound that aggrieved presidential candidates took their petitions over the results of elections up to the apex court in their quest for ‘justice.’ This is an ample indication of the degree of confidence and trust Nigerians had in the judiciary by stakeholders in the electoral process in the past. So, the judiciary is the bridge between the executive and the legislature.

Where there are knotty legal and constitutional issues, the concerned parties approach the judiciary for the interpretation of the law, as the arm of government is ideally, considered to be insulated against politics and chicaneries and weird behaviours of elected politicians that populate the other arms of government.

Questions

The chain of events that led to the resignation of the CJN Muhammad again raised questions about the state of the Nigerian judiciary. While his action came as a surprise to a few legal practitioners, it did astound many others, who felt the decision of the 14 Justices to speak in unison on the state of affairs in the judiciary to rejuvenate and strengthen the bastion of justice. The 1999 general election that restored civil rule in Nigeria was trailed by an avalanche of petitions filed by aggrieved politicians at every stage of the electoral process. This became a big burden, not just for the politicians themselves, but also to their parties due to the logistic demands and requirements on litigation. It also added to the problems and challenges of INEC, as a quantum of its resources was stretched almost to a breaking point.

The other stakeholders in the system equally had to contend with some unforeseen challenges and circumstances that seamlessly depleted their human and material resources earmarked for elections. However, INEC felt the weight of the crisis most with the authorities lamenting that lack of internal democracy, uncomplimentary actions by many political gladiators created deep-seated anger and frustration resulting in party members seeking legal and constitutional redress and justice in law court of election tribunals. This challenging trend has subsisted in the last 21 years, with fears that the unpleasant development could attain a crescendo in the 2023 elections, due to the level of acrimony and bitterness that characterised the conduct of primaries by the leading political parties to pick candidates for the polls.

In the views of some legal luminaries, the decision of Justice Muhammad to resign as CJN with Justice Ariwoola sworn in an acting capacity presents yet an opportunity for self-reinvention and rejuvenation by the judiciary. One of such advocates is a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Jibrin Samuel Okutepa, who decried the appalling condition under which the Justices of the Supreme Court operate. Given their prime position within the arms of government, coupled with their strategic position in the society, Justices deserve everything that would enable them to dispense justice without fear, favour or any form of inhibition. Mr Femi Okeowo, a lawyer and journalist spoke on the issue of reforms in the judiciary, which he said had been the mantra of successive CJNs. He said each of them had the matter as part of his priorities on the assumption of office, but which has not witnessed any significant action. Oketupa also raised many fundamental issues on jurisprudence in the country, advocating the need for the will power and commitment to holistic reforms. He agrees that the processes for the appointments into the Bench need to be reviewed such that emphasis would be on the mental and physical capacity, as well as capability, alertness, and depths. He said such stellar qualities should not be sacrificed on the altar of primordial sentiments and issues. According to the Senior Advocate of Nigeria, the shortfall in the number of Justices of the Supreme Court is impeding the speedy dispensation of justice. He said whereas the apex court should have 21 justices, there are 14 due to retirement of others, with vacancies subsisting. He said Justices should enjoy maximum comfort in order to perform diligently, efficiently, optimally and proficiently. This he said would further insulate them from undue influence and interference as the judiciary is the bastion of public confidence and trust in the society.

Another SAN, Mazi Afam Osigwe, who is a former general secretary of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) expressed a deep concern on the state of the judiciary in the country. He was particularly concerned about the mode of appointments and elevation into the system. He faulted the existing mode of recruitments into the ranks of judges, even as he was surprised about the exclusion of certain categories of legal luminaries from the list of the 12 names of judges being considered as Justices for the Supreme Court. He and Okutepa were of the view that the National Judicial Council (NJC) should have the capacity to back and bite as opposed to the current reality on the mandate of the respected institution. For the Ahmed Raji, an eloquent legal luminary and senior advocate of Nigeria, the orchestration of the memo by the other Justices to the erstwhile CJN on their welfare was unnecessary as such issues could have been addressed mutually without the public knowledge. He said similar institutions in other climes often have issues, but which are amicably resolved without public knowledge, stressing the need to protect our institutions such as the judiciary because of the integrity of the system. He said the conferment of GCON on Muhammad by President Muhammadu Buhari was normal and in tandem with the tradition of the state to honour an outgoing CJN with the prestigious title.

2023 and the judiciary

Before the 2019, INEC national chairman, Professor Mahmood Yakubu had disclosed that a total of 809 pre-election cases were pending in various courts across the country, while it had withdrawn 64 certificates of return and issued to candidates who had been declared winners by various court judgments. He explained that the pre-election cases were filed in court to challenge the conduct of primaries by parties. After the election proper, the INEC boss revealed that the commission was involved in more than 1600 court cases in election-related matters. He said the commission makes budgetary provisions for based on projections of cases and deploy in-house lawyers who are not adequate for the huge number of court cases. “For instance, on the conduct of primaries by political parties alone in 2019 general election, we were dragged to court over 800 times. We have over 809 cases on pre-election matters and we have 807 cases on post-election litigation. We are looking at over 1,600 cases in court,” he said.

With the conclusion of party primaries, parties and their candidates have jumped the gun against the September date for the commencement of campaigns. A litany of litigation is not unlikely in the pre and post electioneering and the actual election. So, the judiciary remains stabilising agent and needs to be in good stead. According to a legal luminary, Dr Ehiogie West-Idahosa, three conditions are key to strengthening the judiciary, one of which is that the judicial system should be publicly perceived as impartial in rendering decisions; that judges should not have personal interest, whether due to bribery and corruption or as a result of political pressures in the outcome of disputes between private parties and the government. According to him, the other factor is that the judicial decisions must be accepted and respected by the contesting parties and the larger public, while the third is that judges need to be free from undue interference from the parties in a case, other branches of government and higher courts within the national judiciary. All this have implications for what constitutes part of the ingredients of democratic system and values: elections, rule of law and human rights.

He said: “The independence of the judiciary is the cornerstone of a democratic society and safeguard for the freedom and rights of the citizens under the Rule of Law. It is extremely important for the judges to be free to make impartial decisions based solely on law and facts without interference, pressure or influence. In a democratic state, it is the duty of the judiciary to formulate the rule of law through interpretation and application of law to respond with a verdict, settling disputes, checking illegality and so on. To help democracy thrive, the basic principles of democracy such as the rights contained in Chapter 4 of the Nigerian Constitution and other democratic rights must be upheld along the principle of compliance with extant laws.” He said it is important to protect the judiciary in a democracy being the defender of people from the intrusions and overreach by the government and powerful individuals, as well as preserves a free and democratic society.

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Kunle Oderemi