Strike: Judiciary workers lock out judges, lawyers in Kwara

There was a gridlock around the state judiciary complex as the executives of JUSUN blocked all entrances to courts to enforce the industrial action.

The Chairman of the Union, Comrade Ibrahim Sambo, while speaking to our Correspondent, said the union is unhappy that while President Muhammadu Buhari has passed into law, the financial Judiciary autonomy bill, state governments have failed to implement it.

“What’s happening now is the quest to have true judicial autonomy, the president has approved, in the executive order number 10, stating that autonomy should be given to state judiciaries.

“But ever since this order was given, nothing has changed. We believe if we embark on industrial action, government will listen to us” he said.

Barrister Tunde Gegele, among several other legal practitioners, who were denied entrance into magistrate’s courts, asked government to endeavour to do the needful so that judiciary can “really represent the true nature of last hope of the common man”.

“The timing is very wrong, we are yet to resume two days after Easter holiday, we all come here to work but everyone is being locked out including the judges. The issue of judiciary autonomy is not just coming, by now, it ought to have been resolved.

“The problem is that judiciary always go begging before the executive, that makes them dependent on the whips and caprices of the executive. And as long as this continue to happen, we cannot guarantee the independent of the Judiciary.

“We believe judiciary deserves to be well treated to really function as the last hope of the common man.”