Aloma Mariam Mukhtar: Views from home and abroad

The magazine premised Justice Mukhtar’s nomination on her judicial cleansing reform and avowed determination to get rid of judges involved in fraudulent practices or judgement for sale. Specifically,  the magazine noted that, ‘’in a country notorious for its crooked officials, Nigeria’s first female CJN, Mukhtar, has built a reputation as an unwavering reformer unafraid to […]

The magazine premised Justice Mukhtar’s nomination on her judicial cleansing reform and avowed determination to get rid of judges involved in fraudulent practices or judgement for sale.
Specifically,  the magazine noted that, ‘’in a country notorious for its crooked officials, Nigeria’s first female CJN, Mukhtar, has built a reputation as an unwavering reformer unafraid to root out criminals.’’ The World Justice Project (WJP) is an independent, multi-disciplinary organisation working to advance the rule of law around. For four years running, the WJP accesses some countries of compliance with the rule law. The WJP’s Rule of Law Index is a quantitative assessment tool designed to offer a detailed and comprehensive picture of the extent to which 99 countries and one jurisdiction around the world adhere to the rule of law.
The WJP Rule of Law Index 2014 report which was released recently awarded Nigeria a pass mark only in Civil Justice, ostensibly the judiciary headed by Justice Mukhtar.
Specifically, the group’s report on Nigeria is as follows:
‘‘Nigeria ranks 93rd overall and near the bottom half of lower middle income countries in most dimensions. The country ranks 69th for checks on the executive branch and 76th for open government, putting it slightly behind the average rankings of sub-Saharan African countries. Yet, in most of the other dimensions, the country remains one of the poorest performers of the region. Corruption is widespread (ranking third to last in the world), the criminal justice system has deficiencies (ranking 91st overall and second to last in the region), fundamental rights are poorly protected (ranking 88th overall), and a deteriorating security situation continues to raise significant concerns (ranking 2nd to last overall). Nigeria’s best performance is in the area of civil justice, where it ranks 52nd globally and 7th among its income peers.”
As understood by the WJP, the delivery of effective civil justice requires that the system be accessible and affordable, as well as free of discrimination, corruption and improper influence by public officials. The delivery of effective civil justice also necessitates that court proceedings be conducted in a timely manner, that is, not subject to unreasonable delays, and that judgments are enforced effectively.
It would be recalled that the United States report titled “Department of State’s Country Report on Human Rights Practices for 2011”, which was tendered before the United States Congress in May 2012 by the Secretary of State, Mrs. Hilary Clinton, had observed copiously that the Nigerian Judiciary is very corrupt and susceptible to manipulations by the rich elite in business and politics.
According to the 60-pages report; “Although the constitution and law provide for an independent judiciary, the judicial branch remained susceptible to pressure from the executive and legislative branches and the business sector.”
A foremost human right activist and a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Mr Femi Falana, had once described Justice Mukhtar in his own words as follows: ‘‘I first met the CJN as a High Court judge in Kano in 1984. My client, a trade union, had sued a powerful Lebanese company in the Kano State High Court for illegally withholding the check-off dues deducted from the wages of all the workers in its employment. The company, which had boasted that it had the judiciary in its pocket, was taken aback when the trial judge, Justice Mukhtar, granted the reliefs sought by the plaintiff and ordered the company to refund and pay to the union the check-off dues which it had illegally withheld.
Since then, I have watched the judge from afar and followed her impeccable judicial career. In a country where judicial corruption has been virtually institutionalised, I make bold to say that Justice Mukhtar has never been associated with corrupt practices or any form of abuse of office. She is conservative but ready to take a radical stand in defence of the rule of law. She is quiet but aggressive in dealing with cases of corruption.
“Her decision to team up with Adesola Oguntade JSC (as he then was) and Walter Onnoghen JSC in writing powerful dissenting opinions in the controversial case of Muhammadu Buhari v Independent National Electoral Commission convinced the reactionary forces in the legal establishment that she could rock the boat if allowed to become the head of the country’s judiciary. The clean bill of health given to Justice Ayo Salami, the suspended President of the Court of Appeal by a Committee of the National Judicial Council chaired by Justice Muktar was the last straw that broke the camel’s back. A plot was therefore hatched to prevent her from becoming the CJN.’’
The Guardian Newspaper Editorial of Tuesday 15 July, 2014 commented thus; ‘’Speaking at the opening session of a conference on judicial reforms organised by the NBA, in conjunction with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and some non-governmental organisations, the CJN accused SANs working in tandem with corrupt judges being investigated by the National Judicial Council (NJC) of being guilty of corruption and misconduct.  She cited a particular instance where a judge accused of corruption invited about six SANs to represent him before the NJC.
The conference on judicial reforms in which the Chief Justice spoke could not have come at a better time in view of dwindling public confidence in the judiciary. It is indeed noteworthy and commendable that Justice Mukhtar has waged a relentless war on corruption in the judiciary since she assumed office. “Lawyers may very well hide under the guise of their rules of professional practice to defend anyone that seeks their legal representation and the issue of fair hearing which some of the judges being investigated raise is always germane to the cause of justice.
Nevertheless, the CJN’s position remains a call on lawyers to be more alert to their responsibility as ministers in the temple of justice.
Where senior lawyers rise to defend judges accused of corruption to the extent that the accusation is not allowed to see the light of day, let alone the accused judge allowed to defend himself, there is obvious danger to law and order.  In such a situation, the society is threatened and ordinary law abiding citizens are not motivated to remain so; indeed they are encouraged to embrace impunity, knowing that the judiciary can be compromised.”

– Ahuraka Yusuf Isah is the media aide to the CJN