- Says Let no Judge flirt with politicians in the performance of their constitutional adjudicatory functions…
- “Our judges must be left alone by those who think that our judges must have political ideologies…“
By J. S Okutepa, SAN
The Nigeria judiciary that I know has codes of conduct for judicial officers. Nigerian judges are not supposed to be politicians and are not allowed to be members of any political party. They are to be far from politics and political parties in whatever form.
Therefore, only those who want to be mischievous or allowed themselves to be fooled by mischievous patronizing statements will be deaf to the concerns of the public of the growing erosion of confidence of the public in the judicial institution. Judicial officers, by the rules code of conduct for judicial, are expected to avoid appearances of improprieties in their personal and professional capacities.That is the reality we must face and preach.
As rightly observed by a writer: “Propriety and the appearance of propriety, both professional and personal, are essential elements of a Judge’s life. As members of the public expect a high standard of conduct from a Judge, he or she must, when in doubt about attending an event or receiving a gift, however small, ask himself or herself the question- “How might this look in the eyes of the public?”
The code of conduct for judicial officers is very clear on what is expected of judicial officers. It provides to the effect that : A Judge shall avoid impropriety and the appearance of impropriety in all of the Judge’s activities both in his professional and private life. A judicial officer should respect and comply with the laws of the land and should conduct himself at all times in a manner that promotes public confidence in the integrity and impartiality of the judiciary.
The Judge must be sensitive to the need to avoid contacts that may lead people to speculate that there is a special relationship between him and someone whom the Judge may be tempted to favour in some way in the course of his judicial duties. A judicial officer must avoid social relationships that are improper or may give rise to an appearance of impropriety or that may cast doubt on the ability of a judicial officer to decide cases impartially.
A Judge shall not hold membership in any organization that discriminates on the basis of race, sex, religion, ethnicity, national origin or other irrelevant causes contrary to fundamental human rights and/or the Fundamental Objectives and Directive Principles of State Policy under the Nigerian Constitution. A judge shall not engage in gambling as a leisure activity.
These are some of the rules that judicial officers are bound to observe and follow because of the peculiar positions they occupy in Nigeria. The pre-eminent positions of our judex do not permit them to belong to or have political leanings or ideologies. That is why section 6 of the 1999 constitution vests judicial power in the courts. Judicial officers are the only ones with powers to adjudicate over disputes between individuals and individuals and individuals and the government or the government and government.
This power makes them to be special breeds that must not be seen to continue to be seen in the gathering of those whose only tools for political survival is partisan partiality of very impure weapons. While it gives political class joy to be seen with judicial officers, judicial officers must resist such tendencies and temptations to be seen with partisan politicians as it will destroy the confidence in justice. Justice is rooted in confidence .
It will, therefore, be short-sighted and/or myopic audacity of arrogance for anyone to argue that because judges in the USA have a political ideological stand, Nigerian judges must necessarily copy the American judges. Americans are Americans. Nigerians are Nigerians. Theirs are not ours, and ours are not theirs. Apologies to my lord Niki Tobi JSC of blessed memories.
It is important I quote my lord Niki Tobi JSC here. Hear the erudite Jurist: “I see from Exhibit EP2/34 the need for Nigerian Judges to maintain a very big distance from politics and politicians. Our Constitution forbids any mingling. As Judges, we must obey the Constitution. The two professions do not meet and will never meet at all in our democracy in the discharge of their functions.
While politics as a profession is fully and totally based on partiality, most of the time, judgeship as a profession is fully and totally based on impartiality, the opposite of partiality. Bias is the trade mark of politicians. Non-bias is the trade mark of the Judge. That again creates a scenario of superlatives in the realm of opposites. Therefore, the expressions “politician” and “Judge” are opposites, so to say, in their functional contents as above, though not in their ordinary dictionary meaning.
Their waters never meet in the same way Rivers Niger and Benue meet at the confluence near Lokoja. If they meet, the victim will be DEMOCRACY most of the time and that will be bad for sovereign Nigeria. And so Judges should, on no account, dance to the music played by politicians because that will completely destroy their role as independent umpires in the judicial process.
Let no Judge flirt with politicians in the performance of their constitutional adjudicatory functions. When I say this, I must also say that I have nothing against politicians. They are our brothers and sisters in our homes. One can hardly find any Nigerian community or family without them. There cannot be democracy without them, and we need democracy, not despotism, oligarchy and totalitarianism. They are jolly good fellows. The only point I am making is that their professional tools are different from ours, and the Nigerian Judge should know this before he finds himself or falls into a mirage where he cannot retrace his steps to administer justice. That type of misfortune can fall on him if the National Judicial Council gets annoyed with his conduct. Ours are not theirs. Theirs are not ours. I will not say more. I will not say less, too. So be it.”
Our judges must be left alone by those who think that our judges must have political ideologies. Our judges must also resist the temptation to think they are politicians like American judges. They are not. The two professions, judgeships and politicians, do not need to meet. And they should not meet. And when they meet, the victim will be the undiluted purity of justice and the rule of law.
Let no one tell us judges in America decide on ideological lines, and so Nigerian judges must copy them. No, they should not. In America, judges are elected. In Nigeria, judges are not elected but appointed based on the need to avoid partisan partiality.
