By Ayodele Oni
Retiring Justice of the Supreme Court of Nigeria, Amina Adamu Augie, has a request for the 10th National Assembly: a wholistic amendment to the 1999 Constitution for effective functioning of Courts in the country.
Justice Augie, who is sixth on line of Justices of the Apex Court, expressed the hope that this is the right time to make the request as the President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, was once her student.
Augie formally bowed out on Thursday with a call on the Godswill Akpabio-led 10th National Assembly to make it a point of duty to amend the Constitution so as to free courts from undue hardships hindering their effective performance.
Justice Augie spoke in Abuja at a valedictory court session held in her honour as she bowed out of the Supreme Court Bench after attaining the mandatory retirement age of 70 years for judicial officers.
According to her, the Supreme Court, as the Apex Court of the land and has its final decisions to shape society’s social order, adding that Justices of the court should be able to focus on what truly matters, issuing directives for formulating specific policies or amend existing ones to better serve their intended purposes.
“But how can they do that when they are drowning in an overwhelming caseload. The only way forward, as highlighted by the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Olukayode Ariwoola during the special session marking the commencement of the 2022/2023 legal year, is to amend the Constitution to restrict the circumstances under which appeals can reach this Supreme Court.
“This marks the final instance where my voice will be heard in any court and I wish to use this opportunity to directly address the 10th National Assembly, through distinguished Senate President Godswill Akpabio, who was once my student at the Law School.
“I had the privilege of teaching him evidence and I trust that he learnt well. Hence, it should be evident to him that swift action is needed from the 10th National Assembly to accomplish what others could not – amending the Constitution to enhance the functioning of our courts in Nigeria.”
Justice Augie implored the National Assembly to undertake the necessary constitutional amendments so that the Supreme Court and its Justices can be freed from the constraints that impede their ability to fulfill their mandate of upholding the rule of law, justice and democracy.
In his remark, the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi (SAN) promised that the Federal Government is prepared and ready to strengthen the Apex Court to attain the required number of Justices as required by the Constitution.
Fagbemi emphasized that the Federal Government acknowledged the sacrifices and the working conditions of the current Justices of the Supreme Court and other Judges in Nigeria.
“President Bola Tinubu’s led government shall guarantee excellent conditions of service and renumerations good enough to appreciate the onerous duties of judicial officers at all level.
“While we appreciate the urgency in reviewing the remuneration of judicial officers which had not been done for over a decade as an integral component of our judicial reforms, we are also appreciative of the greater goal of achieving a true independence for the judiciary which can only be achieved through a comprehensive and sustainable reform process which requires attention and details.”
He said the federal government has commenced a painstaking effort at revisiting and reviewing all necessary instruments towards strengthening the judiciary, rule of law and improving the living conditions of all judicial officers.
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