House Withdraws Bill Seeking to Appoint Non-influential Lawyers as Judges

Udora Orizu

The House of Representatives at the plenary yesterday withdrew a bill seeking to alter the provisions of the 1999 Constitution as amended to ensure that cerebral lawyers, who are not privileged in the society, have the opportunity to rise to the judiciary to deepen the jurisprudence that once caught the attention of global legal minds.

The bill sponsor, Hon. Oberuakpere Afe, in his debate, said the bill seeks an introduction of a new sub-Section (6) of Section 273, which reads that a person shall not be qualified to be appointed a Judge if he does not secure the endorsement of 2/3 members of the local branch of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) where he is registered.

He said: “Such endorsement shall be decided by the ‘yes’ integrity confirmatory vote of all members. It is high time we go back to the old standards premised on quality, competence and integrity which once defined our judicial system. Thus the provisions in this bill are some innovations to tackle the mode of appointment of judges to make it more participatory for members of the legal profession as one of the lines of action to prevent incompetent and corrupt persons from getting into the bench.

“The jurisprudential values of judicial pronouncements have continued to take a downward slide. This is an existential challenge which the legislature must not hesitate to tackle. Cronyism which is responsible for the rot in the judiciary will ease out with the proposed amendment. Let’s remember that a judicial system which does not inspire confidence in the populace is subtle invitation to anarchy. But a judiciary populated by men of letter and integrity, which strengthens the democratic process which requires propping from all fronts.”

In his contribution, the Deputy Speaker, Hon. Idris Wase, opined that it makes no sense that people have to lobby to be part of the appointment process for judges, adding that the people are already complaining that the system has been compromised.