‘Court police will takeover police functions’

Some lawyers have advocated for court police for execution of judgments and to ensure security and decorum within the precincts of the court. What is your take on this? In a democracy, the legislature makes the law, the judiciary interprets while the executive enforces the law. And the police are part of the executive; they enforce […]

Some lawyers have advocated for court police for execution of judgments and to ensure security and decorum within the precincts of the court. What is your take on this?
 In a democracy, the legislature makes the law, the judiciary interprets while the executive enforces the law. And the police are part of the executive; they enforce the law. To execute the judgments, the judiciary needs the assistance of the executive, and that is where the police come in to assist the sheriffs in executing the judgments.
The challenge is when it comes to executing judgments against government establishments like the police, military, the ministries and departments. When it is executing judgments against private individuals, there are no problems in executing the judgments. Another problem is from the commencement of the suit to the final judgment – that is getting to the Supreme Court, it takes a very long time and it can be very frustrating. This is because even when a judgment creditor gets a judgment, to execute it immediately becomes a problem because the losing party – that is the judgment debtor – will decide to go on appeal and when he goes on appeal, it takes many more years for that appeal to be determined one way or the other. So that is where the challenge lies as well.
From your own perspective, do you think the police can be established within the confines of the courts as a security and enforcement arm of the courts?  
What is the rationale? You want to take over the functions of the police? In a very civilised society, the police are supposed to be more powerful than the military because they are the executing arm of government. The police can arrest anybody by the Police Act, once it is suspected that crime is about to be committed. Mere flashing the ID card, they are covered by the law to arrest even a general. By the time you establish the court police and you say they are in charge of execution and they go to execute, there would be clashes because the police would resist it. And there would be friction.
There has to be an understanding between the judiciary and the police. That is why you have to send a letter to the DPO to make police available. We have not taken these laws to the extent we think it should be taken. Because if the police refuses to assist, there can be an order of mandamus; a mandatory injunction compelling them to assist in the execution of the judgment. People may say even if that order is made, would the police comply. Sometimes you make the order and appeal to public court. I give a lot of credit to the media when it comes to the rule of law. For instance, the Federal High Court in Lagos made an order that Kashamu should not be arrested, the NDLEA insisted on going ahead with the arrest but the public outcry is making them to think twice. So you should not be afraid to make an order.
What is the difference between the court marshals of the colonial period and the court police being suggested?
We have the bailiffs and sheriffs in courts. It’s just that they are not performing their functions. The bailiffs just go and serve processes and so on. They are supposed to  enforce orders of court. Besides, the courts are meant to have policemen in courts, not just orderlies. In the past they post policemen on court beats as duty posts. But now they send them to checkpoints.
Some lawyers have criticised the new rules for the appointment of justices, that it’s not competitive and transparent. What’s your take?
The legal profession is a very conservative profession. And by the nature of conservatism, certain things are still guarded in secrecy. We are not ripe for elections in the judiciary. There is still some subjectivity in whatever people do. In appointments, there has to be recommendations because many people are qualified. It’s just for the people to recommend the right people. They are about to introduce advertisements. Now they have introduced interview of judges to ascertain whether you are a fit and proper person to be a judge. This procedure has to be gradual. You don’t just rush into it because other countries are doing the same. Anything that is so radical would be adverse.
Who will conduct the process; some are calling for private consultants?
We don’t need consultants for that. The National Judicial Council (NJC) is there. And there is the Judicial Service Commission. Overtime, we will keep reforming until we get there.
Recently, the Administration of Criminal Justice Act  signed into law was presented. How do you see this development?
Lagos State has started practicing something similar. Most of our criminal laws are obsolete. You remember a situation where a judge was suspended for giving very light sentence. But we lawyers felt that it was being unfair to the judge because they didn’t look at the provisions of the law under which the accused was charged. They didn’t even consider the fact that there was no full trial; it was a plea bargain.
The new administration of criminal justice administration system is a step in the right direction. By that law so many stakeholders are involved and they are bound to give account of their role. A situation where somebody on awaiting trial is kept in prison for longer than the term meant for that offence, the issue of holding charge or situations where the police will arrest before they investigate, when they should investigate and have evidence before arrest has been taken care of by the new law. There is no proper investigation, surveillance and intelligence gathering in our investigative organs. Most times they rely on confessions, obtained through duress. Then when they have not concluded investigations they send the file to the DPP and begin exchange of mails.
Do you think the challenge of lack of technology and database must have caused the situation you just analysed?
I have always maintained that the Nigeria Police is a very formidable force when they want to work. They know the criminals and how to get them. They have information by local knowledge etc. Right now technology is coming in; they have started gathering fingerprints and the rest. The issue of local knowledge is why people are calling for community or state policing system.
What suggestions do you have for the new Buhari administration?
The rule of law is not yet grounded in Nigeria. Once there is rule of law where people know they are accountable for their actions, and everybody is subject to the law, the country will move forward.
What are your realistic expectations on the new government?
Yes, the expectations are very high. I am not being pessimistic; I don’t see a remarkable difference because a lot has to be done. When you have a lot to do within a given period, what you will achieve within will be insignificant. On corruption, it cannot be fought by one man; it is fought by the system. Nigeria’s corruption is systemic and you need to overhaul the system.
They have to block those loopholes that make corruption attractive. How many people pay tax in this country?