Nigeria?s chief justice sets new rules for judgesThe Chief Justice of Nigeria, Walter Onnoghen at an event that was organised by the Itse Sagay-led presidential advisory committee against corruption ordered judges to resume at 9 am and close 4 pm daily in all courts.
- The chief Justice of Nigeria Walter Onnoghen has set new rules for judges across the country
- Onnoghen's aim is said to fight corruption and ensuring speedy and transparent delivery of justice in the Nigerian judicial system
- In the recent past, the judiciary has been accused of corruption along with the allegation that there some complaints of corrupt practices and unprofessional conducts
The Chief Justice of Nigeria, Walter Onnoghen on Tuesday, February 27, ordered judges to resume at 9 am and close 4 pm daily in all courts.
Premium Times reports Onnoghen made this known at a function on at the presidential villa, Abuja. The event was organised by the Itse Sagay-led presidential advisory committee against corruption.
Onnoghen?s directives was part of 13 reforms aimed at fighting corruption and ensuring speedy and transparent delivery of justice in the Nigerian judicial system.
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He said: ''Backlog of cases, delayed proceedings and corruption allegations against officers are some of the stains the institution has been battling to remove.
''In the recent past, the judiciary has been accused of corruption along with the allegation that when complaints of corrupt practices and unprofessional conducts are brought before the National Judicial Council (NJC), the Council shields or delays investigating the allegations so levied against judicial officers.''
The president of the court of appeal, Zainab Bulkachuwa, read the reform address which is embedded with different directives to improve the judicial system.
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He said: ''The reforms I have introduced cover a wide range of issues; from establishing new modalities for appointment of judicial officers, to tightening judicial discipline regulations and fashioning out a speedy way to clear backlog of cases, among others.''
He went further to say that irrelevant delay in justice system is equivalent to corruption and that the judicial system, like any other institution, needs constant review to ensure improvement.
Also, the President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) is to assist the NJC with a separate assessment report on all NBA candidates being considered for judicial appointment. Also, all judges of lower courts and other public officers such as chief registrars and secretaries, among others, are henceforth required to write examinations before being appointed.
Others are: To constitute more committees to investigate allegations against judges, all heads of courts are to designate some courts in their jurisdictions as special courts to handle corruption cases, while 20 per cent of Judiciary Budget is to be devoted to Corruption and Financial Crimes Cases Trial Monitoring Committee (COTRIMCO).
In conclusion, all travels outside Nigeria by judges will now be with the permission of the CJN, after an application would have been made; and lastly, all judges of lower courts in the country have been directed to submit returns of cases quarterly to the Federal Judicial Service Commission (FJSC.
Meanwhile, NAIJ.com had reported that the attorney general of the federation and minister of justice Abubakar Malami briefed on Wednesday, February 21, his ministry saved over N4.5 trillion from high profile cases prosecuted by the Ministry of Justice between 2015 and 2017.
Malami made this known at the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting chaired by President Muhammadu Buhari at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
EFCC stages a walk against corruption - on NAIJ.com TV:
Source: Naija.ng
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Nigeria?s chief justice sets new rules for judges