CJN seeks amendment to terminate most cases in A’Court
• AGF warns new SANs against unprofessional behavior
Nigeria’s Chief Justice Olukayode Aliwula (CJN) has called on Parliament to amend the law to ease the burden on the Supreme Court and allow most appeals to be discontinued in intermediate courts.
According to the CJN, a total of 1,271 petitions and appeals were received by the Supreme Court from September last year to July this year. Of these, “there were 388 political appeals, 215 criminal appeals and 464 civil appeals,” he said.
Aliullah said the Supreme Court issued 251 decisions during the review period. Of these, 125 were political appeals, 81 were civil appeals, and 45 were criminal appeals.
The CJN made this disclosure at a special court commemorating the commencement of the new statutory year 2023/2024 and the conferment of the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) in Abuja.
He said that considering the unpleasant events that dotted the legal year, especially the reduction in the number of judges of the Supreme Court, this year’s report card is impressive, attractive and appreciable, which is not easily achieved. He said it was related to several issues. Only one branch of government can overcome this. ”
He asserted that the Supreme Court is determined to redouble its efforts to achieve a judiciary that the people can be proud of.
He pointed out that the judiciary must actively avoid any kind of fear or favoritism, saying, “When the public becomes aware of bias, corruption, and bias in judgments, it casts doubt on the integrity of the entire judicial system.” will be thrown, resulting in polluting the river.” of Justice. ”
While confirming the SAN ranks of the 58 lawyers, Mr. Aliullah called them worthy ambassadors of justice.
He said: “As Nigeria’s senior defenders, you all carry a heavy burden right now. From the moment you leave this courtroom, you and everything around you will be freely scrutinized by everyone with whom you come into contact. , will be dissected.
“From now on, nothing will be better than your private life, because whatever you used to think of as private life will now be treated as public life by ordinary people. And there is nothing you can do about it. there is no.
“So be careful what you say, what you do, and how you interact, for you have already assumed the role of minister of the court. “As guardians of justice, you must demonstrate exceptional integrity, restraint, and high standards of advocacy.”
In his speech, Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice Lateef Fagbemi (SAN) reminded new SANs of the current law that can lead to their removal from their positions in case of unprofessional conduct. Ta.
“Being a privilege also means that it can be lost or taken away. The new rules make no provision for restoring a name to the register once it has been removed. It is worth noting that, therefore, we must continue to maintain the standards and qualities that are considered worthy of the rank from the beginning.”
Source: guardian.ng