A collapsing court and crumbling country

It was only by whiskers that a man who has sentenced many to death during the cause of an illustrious judicial career escaped death himself in circumstances that would have been amusing were they not so alarming. On Wednesday, July 12, 2023, while in his office apparently attending to some urgent administrative duties, a section […]

It was only by whiskers that a man who has sentenced many to death during the cause of an illustrious judicial career escaped death himself in circumstances that would have been amusing were they not so alarming.

On Wednesday, July 12, 2023, while in his office apparently attending to some urgent administrative duties, a section of the High Court Complex in Ekiti collapsed sending the Chief Judge, Oyewole Adeyeye, to the hospital.

In the aftermath of the shocking incident, the Nigeria Bar Association (NBA), which is the umbrella body of lawyers in Nigeria, released a statement. Many Nigerians also weighed in.

The statements have been to wish the chief judge quick recovery and express shock. In a country where superstition is rife, the timing of the collapse and his presence when it happened would certainly have the superstitious rendering their interpretations and suspicions. Yet, there is nothing superstitious about the fact that beyond the suspicion of those for whom every misfortune is the machination of “village people”, there is enough shame to go around.

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Can a government house, any government house, collapse in Nigeria because of disrepair? The simple answer is no because the executive usually looks after itself.

In Nigeria’s fatally flawed federal arrangement, the executive looks after itself and episodically looks after the legislature. For the judiciary, combing for crumbs from the master’s table is typically its only hope.

As Nigeria’s descent into dysfunction has gained forceful traction, frustrated and terrified Nigerians have seen their finger-pointing grow wilder. A chief target of what is an archery of fingers has been the Nigerian judiciary.

For many, the Nigerian judiciary is not just a prominent part of Nigeria’s problems, it is the very source of many Nigerian problems, it is the very face of Nigeria’s problems with corrupt judges twisting the law, thwarting the course of justice and selling judgements to the highest bidder.

Coming off the calamitous administration of Muhammadu Buhari who used the supposed failure of the judiciary to hide his incompetence and ineptitude, it is safe to say that Nigerians are not exactly the most confident bunch in their judiciary.

But, before the housewife can be blamed for making a tasteless pot of soup, it would only be fair that an inventory is conducted of the ingredients given to her.

While the learned Chief Judge of Ekiti State escaped death by the whiskers, there is no escaping the fact that the judiciary will remain a dying institution unless urgent reforms are made.

Kene Obiezu wrote via [email protected]