The Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami (SAN), on Monday, charged the leadership of the National Industrial Court of Nigeria (NICN) to put in place proactive measures that would promote the administration of justice in the country.

Malami was speaking in a message through the Solicitor General of the Federation and Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Justice, Dayo Akpata (SAN), to a special court sitting to mark the 2020/2021 legal year of the National Industrial Court of Nigeria in Abuja.

The AGF stressed the need for judges of the court to maintain sanctity and credibility in ensuring that the sacred integrity reposed on them remain unshaken in order to foster and promote public confidence in the judgments of the court.

While applauding the court for upholding the rule of law and attainment of stable industrial relations in the country, the chief law officer called on lawyers to cooperate with the court in ensuring that the dignity, integrity and credibility of the court are not ridiculed.

“We must collectively shun fraudulent practices to render sound and unbiased advice to our clients based on laid down laws and not out of sentiment or pecuniary gains,” he advised and assured the court of the cooperation of his office in a manner that would not undermine the independence of the judiciary.

Speaking on behalf of the Body of Senior Advocates of Nigeria (BOSAN), Chief Adegboyega Awomolo (SAN) said, the aspect of the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria that relates to the judiciary, as an arm of government, deserves a critical reengineering to enhance the principle of separation of powers, independence of the judiciary and to make the rule of law a meaningful concept in a constitutional democracy that the country practices.

According to Awomolo, the greatest threats to the judiciary in the current dispensation lie in the incessant disregard for the letters and spirit of the constitution by politicians, adding that the process of appointment of judicial officers at all levels, manifests an outright disregard for the principle of separation of powers and independence of the judiciary.

In his words, “In recent times, it has become clear that the Nigerian Judiciary and all institutions created under the constitution to ensure its independence have been manipulated, undermined, controlled and compromised, all with a view to asserting authority over it.”

He said the funding of the judiciary and appointment of heads of court, particularly at the states have been politicised, compromised and corrupted.

Many states judiciaries, Awomolo observed are treated as a mere appendage of the office of the Governor because he is regarded as the “Executive governor,” pointing out that final decisions of the National Judicial Council (NJC) on who should be appointed Chief Judges were serially obstructed and compromised by State House of Assembly and executives governors of states.

The President of the National Industrial Court of Nigeria, Justice Benedict Kanyip, in his speech at the special court session, which is the first since the establishment of the court 42 years ago said a total of 1, 486 cases were disposed by the court between October last year and June 2020.

He said the court will strive for excellence by improving on the justice delivery mechanisms allowed by law so that access to justice can be made easy and affordable to all who require the services of the court.

He said the court will not compromise on the issues of discipline, transparency and hard work and announced plans to make rules of the court responsive to the physically challenged when they use the services of the court.

PUT IN PLACE MEASURES FOR IMPROVED SERVICE DELIVERY, MALAMI TELLS INDUSTRIAL COURT’S PRESIDENT