Governors move to end judiciary workers strike, hold meeting with JUSUN excos Wednesday

The 36 state governors under the aegis of Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) have concluded plans to meet with the leadership of the Judiciary Staff Union of Nigeria (JUSUN) with a view to end the 8-day nationwide strike.

Governor Simon Lalong of Plateau State who disclosed this during a media chat with Governors’ Forum Press Corps in Abuja, dismissed a report alleging that the Governors are opposed to the financial autonomy of the judiciary.

While responding to questions on the public outcry on ongoing strike allegedly caused by the State Governors and the non-implementation of Executive Order 10 signed by President Muhammadu Buhari, he said: “The Court did not make any pronouncement on Order 10. The court said, there is a law on financial, so Order 10 and financial autonomy is different, so Order 10 is not law, financial autonomy is the law.

“Now, the implementation of your financial autonomy was what according to them, led to the enactment of Order 10. So people don’t understand what is Order 10; Order 10 is talking about implementation.

“But for us Governors, we are saying no; we are going to do the implementation, we don’t need any Order 10 to force us to do the implementation. So we don’t need Order 10. We are only working on the law of implementation because Federal Government cannot tell us how to implement it.

“We are doing the implementation. So for the judiciary, I’ve explained, I said it’s perhaps people don’t understand people have not even read what is Order 10 and the difference between Order 10 and the financial autonomy when we are having a meeting which we are going to conclude tomorrow, is about financial autonomy.

“It’s not about order 10. Order 10 of course is sub judice now; it’s in Court, we are not bothered about order 10, we are talking about the implementation of the financial autonomy law.

“I was a Speaker, we started it in 1999; today I’m a Governor, and I knew how the Governors agreed and brought in financial autonomy. It was a law, agreed by the governors and the Governors said go and pass it.

“Otherwise, how many times were brought it every year, and then it was failing and at the time that we were there, we all agreed as governors and said, let’s go and pass and implement it in our states and we pass it.

“So who is the one that is even crying more than the bereaved? We are the ones, all these things affect us. And, of course, talking today, I’m a lawyer and I would want the judiciary to be autonomous.

“I’ve been a legislator, I was the Speaker, Chairman of former Speakers conference up till today. So, I will say that I will want autonomy for them, and I’m a member of the executive today, so combined.

“It is strengthening the institution, because people are thinking that is about money, it’s not about money. We want all the institutions strengthened; both the judiciary and the legislature.”

While responding to question on why the Governors are foot-dragging, Governor Lalong who doubles as Chairman, Northern Governors’ Forum who disagreed with the insinuation, argued that “No governor is foot-dragging. Who’s foot-dragging?

“We were not consulted when we saw a law passed and Order came. So when you are talking about implementation, you’re talking about policy, you don’t wake up because the law is passed and you said you are doing it, how?

“There must be processes. For instance, as a speaker, I will tell you that you cannot do financial autonomy until you have a service commission in place. You must have a service commission. You must establish a service commission, you must establish a state Allocation Committee, and all these are steps toward autonomy.

“You don’t achieve autonomy in a day; we did it for National Assembly, and there was no Order 10 for implementation. It took them stages. The federal government is aware, members of the National Assembly are today Governor, how can they say they don’t want autonomy? We have seven Governors who are members of the National Assembly, who fought for autonomy and got it for the National Assembly. So we are saying it’s a process, by the time you move the process but someone will just come and say Order 10 I’m doing it today, no!”

When asked the extent of engagement on the financial autonomy, he said: “We’ve had very useful dialogue with both the representatives of the judiciary and the State Speakers.

“Yesterday they were in my state and we all agreed that by tomorrow we will round it up with all the Governors; with their team – Judiciary and PASAN, to explain to them that sometimes people don’t do what they are fighting for. I said you are fighting for what? You said Order 10, I said which Order 10?”

Governor Lalong maintained that in any democratic environment, certain things would have to be done through dialogue.

The Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) has threatened to stage a protest in support of the Judiciary Staff Union of Nigeria (JUSUN) over demand for financial autonomy.

Chairman of NBA Ikeja, Bartholomew Aguegbodo, announced this known to journalists after a meeting of the branch executive at the Bar Centre, GRA Ikeja.

Aguegbodo said if today’s meeting between Governors Forum and JUSUN fails to agree on the implementation of financial autonomy for the judiciary, the branch: “would have no other option than to take further steps to compel them to comply with the provisions of the 1999 Constitution, as amended.”

Asked what he meant by “further steps,” the Ikeja NBA chairman said: “What we are talking about is willful disobedience to provisions of the constitution.

YOU SHOULD NOT MISS THESE HEADLINES FROM NIGERIAN TRIBUNE

Governors move to end judiciary workers strike, hold meeting with JUSUN excos Wednesday

COVID-19: Nigeria Recorded 624 New Infections Last Week, Lowest In Over Five Months

Last week, Nigeria recorded 624 new COVID-19 infections which is the lowest the country recorded in five months, Tribune Online analysis shows.Governors move to end judiciary workers strike, hold meeting with JUSUN excos Wednesday

The 624 new cases reported between March 28 and April 3 is a reduction from the 849 recorded the previous week…Governors move to end judiciary workers strike, hold meeting with JUSUN excos Wednesday

Governors move to end judiciary workers strike, hold meeting with JUSUN excos Wednesday