From Eric Ikhilae, Abuja
President Muhammadu Buhari has been urged to fast-track the appointment of more Justices for the Supreme Court to enable the court function effectively.
The President is also urged to take urgent steps to improve on the welfare of judicial officers in the country in view of the critical role of the Judiciary in safeguarding the nation’s democracy.
Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Professor Yemi Akinseye-George said with the number of Justices of the Supreme Court currently standing at 12, it was practically impossible for the court to function effectively.
In a statement, Prof Akinseye-George, who is also President, Centre for Socio-Legal Studies (CSLS), said: “As a matter of urgency, the NJC should cause to be filled all the vacancies in the Supreme Court. This will enable the reduction of the backlog of appeals.
“With a full complement of 21 justices, three or more panels of the court can be sitting in turns. All non-contentious applications such as those seeking leave for one thing or the other should be taken in chambers or via video conferencing.”
Prof Akinseye-George, who urged President Buhari to accelerate the confirmation of the appointment of the Acting President of the Court of Appeal, Justice Monica Dongbam-Mensem, called for a reduction in the workload of the Supreme Court.
“An amendment should be made to the Constitution to limit the variety of appeals that can be taken to the Supreme Court.
“For example, matters of dissolution of marriage, customary law disputes devoid of constitutional contents and other such matters should no longer go beyond the Court of Appeal,” he said.
He urged the NJC to hasten the measures being taken to improve the take-home pay of judges as well as their allowances, noting that “ several judges have been on the same salary scale for several years.
“This is an indirect way of reducing their salaries which is tantamount to a violation of the Constitution. It is also an indirect interference with the independence of the judges. There is no gain-saying that judges do important and extremely sensitive work.
“The legislature has continued to amend the Constitution with the resultant additional burden for the courts. Yet, there has been no corresponding improvement in the welfare of judicial officers.
“While civil servants and political office holders have had their salaries and other welfare packages reviewed upward so many times, those of the judicial officers have remained frozen for several years, and for over a decade in the case of the senior judges.
“There is, therefore, an urgent need for the NJC to take the necessary steps in liaison with relevant organs of government to ensure upward review of the salary and other welfare packages of judicial officers,” he said.
He suggested an arrangement to ensure that the retirement package of every judge should include a minimum of a decent bungalow of three or four bedrooms and two-bedroom boys’ quarters in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) or any state capital.
He added: “The judiciary should ensure that every retiring federal judge is guaranteed a decent accommodation in the FCT or a suitable state capital in the country.
“The states will follow suit if they are not already doing so. Lagos State deserves commendation in this respect as every judge on the day of swearing-in, also receives the keys to his or her personal accommodation.”
