TASK BEFORE THE NEW CHIEF JUSTICE OF NIGERIA

To say that confidence in the Supreme Court is at an all-time low will certainly not be an over statement. The other time the justices had their reputation battered was when African Concord magazine published in a December 1992 edition an article titled, ‘‘Justice Mohammed Bello: Kick him out now! Lawyers demand”.

 In January 1993, the then Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Mohammed Bello, and eight other justices of the Supreme court filed a N450 million libel suit against the Concord Press of Nigeria (CPN), seeking damages for an alleged defamatory publication in the African Concord.

The justices claimed that the reference to them severally and individually in the publication that Gen. Ibrahim Babangida administration had bribed them with Mercedes Benz exotic cars’ gifts amounted to libel and had brought them to ridicule.

It was quite messy. But reason prevailed when the Justices withdrew the case from the court after Concord apologised to them. Fast forward to 2022. This is the year justices of the court came together to write a letter to the Chief Justice of Nigeria threatening to take steps if issues pertaining to their welfare and ability to do their work were not addressed. That was a first in the history of Nigeria.

Consequently, the former CJN, Justice Ibrahim Tanko Muhammad resigned “on health grounds.”

Many described the tenure of Justice Mohammad as controversial. Impunity was at its height. Staff welfare was completely neglected. Many are hoping that the appointment of Justice Olukayode Ariwoola will bring some sanity into the apex court. But the question is – will it?

There is a reason why nothing seems to be working in the court. It is lack of accountability. For every act of impunity that is perpetrated in the court, no one has ever been held accountable. The new CJN can reverse this trend by righting some of the wrongs in the court.

 In the letter to the former CJN, justices of the Supreme Court wrote: “Your Lordship may also remember that the National Assembly has increased the budgetary allocation of the Judiciary. We find it strange that in spite of the upward review of our budgetary allocation, the Court cannot cater for our legitimate entitlements. This is unacceptable!” The Chief Justice of Nigeria is now in a position to answer the question above.

The impunity in the court isn’t limited to administration alone. There are judgments delivered under the leadership of the former CJN that had turned our dear nation into a laughing stock among nations. The mysterious judgment that declared Hope Uzodinma, the governor of Imo State. Justice Chima Nweze had warned that the Imo judgement “will continue to haunt our electoral jurisprudence.”

Many are hoping that the new leadership of the court under Justice Ariwoola will redeem itself by attending to plethora of applications drawing the attention of the learned justices of the court to the manifest error in some other vexatious judgments of the apex court. His Lordship had in the past demonstrated this rare courage.

Now that he is at the helm, Justice Ariwoola is being called upon to help the court, the judiciary and the nation by embarking on some soul searching and house cleaning. There is no better way to begin than to first restore the credibility of the court than giving justice to all persons irrespective of social status and political affiliations. In his own words during his screening at the Senate “you will never know how painful it is until justice is denied you “. To whom much is given, much is expected

• Babatola Michael, Lagos