Justice must be rooted in truth and not fantasy and arid legal technicalities

By J.S. Okutepa

Not too long ago, seventeen senior advocates of Nigeria, SANs, of Kogi State extraction wrote and protested to NJC and the Hon Chief Judge of Kogi State about the appointments of additional judges for Kogi State.

The protest was based on the lopsided proposals to appoint some persons as additional judicial officers for the state and the lack of infrastructures to accommodate such appointments given the terrible unhygienic judicial environments that judges in the state are currently subjected to.

Given our vintage positions and the privilege we enjoyed under the law, we had thought that we would at least be heard by the relevant authorities and a reply done to our protest letter. Nothing of such was done.

We then thought and reasonably too that there were justifiable causes to complain, and in the process we decided to approach the court where we felt we can be given level playing ground of hearing that would be just and fair. Seven of us sued. I was among the seven eminent senior advocates of Nigeria that went to court.

That is the case of YUNUS USTAZ USMAN, SAN & 6 ORS vs NATIONAL JUDICIAL COUNCIL & 3 ORS suit No FHC/ ABJ/ CS/ 05/2024. It was filed on 8th of January 2024. On the 18th of April 2024, the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja delivered a judgment in that case in which that court found no merits in the case and dismissed it.

Before judgment, the court formulated two issues for determination.These are: Whether the court has jurisdiction to determine the suit filed by the plaintiffs and whether the plaintiffs are entitled to the reliefs sought. These said issues were resolved against the Plaintiffs in favour of the Defendants on the grounds of lack of locus standi.

It was the view of the court that as plaintiffs, we failed to demonstrate infringement of our rights by the Defendants, and the suit was dismissed on this ground. The court held further that the plaintiffs’ failure to establish interest rendered the suit academic.

The court then held that by the failure to establish locus standi, the plaintiffs were deemed to be busybodies, resulting in dismissal of the matter.

The court went further to hold that assuming we the Plaintiffs had Locus standi, our reliefs were dismissed on the grounds of failure to exhaust administrative remedies of doctrines of rightness and exhaustion.The Plaintiffs it held did not pursue administrative remedies, rendering the suit unripe for adjudication for what the court called failure to give NBA due notice.

The court further held that there were procedural omissions: The plaintiffs, according to court, neglected essential procedural steps outlined under the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as amended. The court also held that by virtue of section 271 of the 1999 constitution of Federal Republic of Nigeria as amended, the first defendant has discretion in judges’ appointments. Consequently, the suit was dismissed accordingly for having no leg to stand.

The court also expunged the DVD video, and photos tendered through my humble self for having not been tendered by the maker and that it amounts to documentary hearsay, amongst other reasons. The dismissal of this case is as unfortunate and unfair as the fact that the court closed its eyes to obvious truth on the arid legal technicalities in sabotage of a just cause.

I have always wondered the sense of justice we see in our courts. Justice must be rooted in truth and not fantasy and arid legal technicalities that fail to see truth where truth is visible. The photos and videos I attached to my affidavit were downloaded from the Internet. There was a certificate of compliance. The court watched and viewed these videos and saw the horrible state of dilapidation of the courts in Kogi State. The court did not hide its lamentations on the state of the courts in Kogi State on the day it watched these videos in open court.

The way courts decide cases and have the mind to close eyes to obvious truth before them in abuse of the sacred duties bestowed on them by law makes me wonder why they do so. It appears the courts appear ready to do the bidding of the system and pandered to the dictate of unjust system to the prejudices of the progress of the judiciary and appointing process.
I have come to think that as a system, some of courts enjoyed the rotten processes in judicial appointments.

Anyone who labours to ensure that the right things are done are branded as busy bodies and persons with no interest in the matter. Nigeria is ours to make or destroy by the kind of justice system we operate.The kind of appointments we make to the bench have ripple and multiple effects on the justice we get and the morals we boosted.

When the system and power that be decided to recommend appointments to the bench based on persons who may be and who appear morally and intellectually inept and those who know somebody and connected to power that be and not based on moral uprightness and intellectually sound knowledge of the law, those who have reasons to approach the courts should not be turned away on arid legal technicalities of Locus Standi.

By this decision, the judiciary and those who are responsible for appointments have wittingly and / or unwittingly laid and solidified the foundation for destruction of the judiciary.

To describe seven eminent Senior Advocates of Nigeria who raised genuine and real concerns about the rotteness of the infrastructures of Kogi judiciary and the breaches of the Nigerian constitution in the processes for the proposed appointments of judicial officers in that state as busybodies is uncharitable and laughable to say the least. It is an abuse of judicial knowledge and language.

But let it be known that when slaves are comfortable in their slavery they see every effort at giving them freedom as obstacles. For me, posterity will decide tomorrow who has destroyed justice and the judiciary in Nigeria. No legal practitioner is a medlesome interloper in the affairs of justice and administration of justice, including appointments to the bench.

The bar fights for the welfare and interests of the legal profession and to hold any members of the noble profession as being a busybody in the affiairs of justice is to say the least sad and unfortunate generalization of the phrase busybody.

For me and the rest of us, we are not busybodies. We are reasonable legal practitioners with sincere concerns for the welfare and interests of judiciary and judicial officers, both serving, retiring, retired and those yet to be appointed. The suit we filed was in furtherance of our concerns for the good of the judiciary and our fidelity to the oaths we took both when we became lawyers and as senior Advocates of Nigeria.

We sworn to defend and uphold the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. To describe the suit filed by seven eminent silks in furtherance of the oaths we took as been suit filed by busybodies is not only sad, it is unfortunately uncomplimentary and uncharitable. It’s sad, to say the least. We leave the rest for posterity to judge. That is my stand on this matter and I wish the judiciary well in Nigeria.