A two-day workshop for judicial officers held in Abuja, on Recent Reforms of Banking and Financial Services Law and Practice, has provided an opportunity to appraise the systemic delay in the Nigerian legal system: a disincentive to commercial investment in the country.

Unfortunately, the verdict is dire — both from the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Ibrahim Muhammad and the Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele. So, we need urgent action to remedy that dire situation.

According to the CJN, who declared the workshop open: ”The journey to the Supreme Court in a commercial dispute could last for as long as eight to 20 years.” He went on: ”This is quite disheartening and the effect of this is that the investment at stake, or money in dispute, would have depreciated in value such that the successful party would gain no benefit from the judgment”. We hope that as the helmsman of the judiciary, the CJN will proffer solution to the delays.
On his part the Governor of CBN lamented that “recalcitrant debtors had exploited the lack of prioritisation of credit recovery matters, by the Nigerian judicial system, to frustrate debt recovery efforts of financial institutions in the country.” Emefiele stated that the ”BOFIA 2020 also provides enhanced recovery and resolution tools for failing banks, specialised banks and other financial institutions in order to prevent systemic crisis, maintain financial system stability and sustain depositor confidence.”

We hope that with the new BOFIA 2020 in place, and the workshops organised for judicial officers, there would be enhanced effectiveness in determining cases in courts, particularly as it affects commercial transactions in the country. We agree with the CJN “that timely dispensation of justice by the judiciary is a critical factor that will enhance financial stability in Nigeria”. The challenge, however, is how to enhance the efficiency of courts.

One sure way to achieve that is to ensure effectiveness in the entire justice delivery system, at all levels of the courts. Perhaps, the starting point is the implementation of the financial autonomy of the judiciary, which the executive arm, particularly at the state levels, has been frustrating. The unnecessary controversy stirred by state governors, to delay the financial autonomy of the judiciary, should end.