Judiciary as change agent

“We cannot continue to pretend that all is well with Nigeria; the judiciary seems to have been conquered… without the rule of law, societies will be in a perpetuate state of conflict.  The rule of law is imperative for the maintenance of public orders.” – Ogbom Goodluck Esq By virtue of Section 6{1} 2011 C.F.R.N […]

“We cannot continue to pretend that all is well with Nigeria; the judiciary seems to have been conquered… without the rule of law, societies will be in a perpetuate state of conflict.  The rule of law is imperative for the maintenance of public orders.” – Ogbom Goodluck Esq

By virtue of Section 6{1} 2011 C.F.R.N {as amended} “the judicial powers of the federation shall be vested in the judicial courts to which this section relates, being courts established for the federation…” The judiciary as an arm of government plays a vital role in protecting the sanctity of the country, it safeguards against the abuse of the fundamental human rights of its citizenry, upholds the rule of law and serve as a check to the excesses of the Executive and Legislature, all in a bid to avoid anarchy and chaos in the society. In simple words, without a functioning judiciary a country cannot maintain the enforcement of law and order, this is how important the judiciary is to a nation.
The government of the day came into power with a change mantra, to do things differently than the way PDP did before. The citizens were assured of a new dawn, a better Nigeria where the court of law would regain its place as the last hope of the common man.  While it is still early to pass judgment on the ruling party, the judiciary ought to play its part as a change agent. “You cannot teach a child the right thing in attempting to get back at the child with same actions you condemn that child for.”
With election tribunals going on, nullification of election results in some quarters and the fight against corruption, the judiciary has been a subject of media talks lately and the reactions by some Nigerians is not encouraging.
“I cannot be quiet and allow the APC government destroys the judiciary, how can an Appeal Court use an exhibit that was not admitted by the tribunal to cancel an election? President Buhari should explain to Nigerians why card reader and collation did not invalidate elections in Yobe, Imo, Lagos, Ogun and Oyo states that had the same issue of accreditation. Whereas Akwa Ibom election is annulled based on card reader and collation that was shown live on channels TV… it therefore means that APC’s change was just a mantra to deceive the electorate to have their votes,” Femi Falana {SAN}
President Muhammadu Buhari in his inaugural speech on May 29th 2015 promised independence of the judiciary and respect for rule of law, where no man is above the law or the judiciary being partial, now we are getting complains that the government of the day is not actually different from the previous ones.
Don’t get me wrong, am a huge fan of the APC and the change mantra, as a matter of fact the country we live in needs urgent intervention or else there would be no future for the poor kids, but then, while the government is doing everything to make sure that all is well with the way things are in Nigeria, the judiciary needs to be seen as an epitome of impartiality and justice.
What is making waves now in the political atmosphere is that the ruling party is using the judiciary for witch hunting and also, to recover power from states where it lost. This is not a good image for the government of the day and the judiciary.
At this time and age we should not be hearing that government agencies are flouting court orders or the judiciary being used as a tool to get favoured judgment.  What we need right now is the confidence that our votes have been placed in the right hands and Nigeria is soaring higher on a better note.
 “Lawyers should not remain silent on such issues, it sets an embarrassing precedent and should not be accepted.” The Nigerian Bar Association as an umbrella body of all lawyers in Nigeria should be our voice and ensure that the right thing  is not just being done but also felt by the Nigerian populace.

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