The Unsatisfactory State of our Justice System (1)
This is the first in a series of write-ups by Olawale Fapohunda and Onikepo Braithwaite, directed at the three branches of government, aimed at drawing attention to the unsatisfactory state of our administration of justice system. We seek to articulate th
"WE URGE PRESIDENT BUHARI, TO CONSIDER THE INAUGURATION OF NATIONAL COUNCIL ON ADMINISTRATION OF JUSTICE, TO PROVIDE HIGH-LEVEL POLICY MAKING, IMPLEMENTATION AND OVERSIGHT OF INTERVENTIONS IN THE JUSTICE SECTOR. ITS MANDATE SHOULD BE TO ENSURE A COORDINATED, EFFICIENT, EFFECTIVE AND CONSULTATIVE APPROACH IN THE ADMINISTRATION OF JUSTICE AND REFORM OF THE JUSTICE SYSTEM"
An Appeal to President Muhammadu Buhari
‘As you all know by now, this administration has taken on the challenge of improving security, fighting corruption and revamping the economy, among many others. Security obviously depends on law and order. It also depends on the entire justice system working efficiently to ensure compliance with laws and appropriate safeguards for human rights’. ...President Muhammadu Buhari at the 55th Annual General Conference of the Nigerian Bar Association.
Between Judicial Reform and Justice Sector Reform
In previous publications, The Law Page has been emphatic that the responsibility for facilitating important reforms in the justice sector, lies with Mr. President. Concerns have been raised about Mr. President's frequent calling out the judiciary.
Blaming the judiciary for all the things wrong with the justice sector, is as unfair as it is unhelpful. Things like the absence of forensic analysis; the underfunding of the DPP’s office within an under-resourced Justice Ministry; poor evidence gathering; an archaic legislative regime to mention a few, are some of the things that the Judiciary have no control over, but for which it always seems to take the blame.
The Judiciary should only be accountable for the things that the Judiciary controls. It is easy to become impatient -- as we often have, at the pace of change within the Judiciary. Next week we will highlight the structural and cultural impediments to performance that continues to bedevil the Judiciary.
To be sure, the Judiciary is only one part of the administration of justice system. Judicial reform and Justice sector reform are not the same. In as much as judicial reform is desirable, what Nigeria needs is a holistic reform of the justice sector. The difference is significant and it will be a mistake to confuse or equate the two. In any case we go as far as saying that in matters of justice sector reform the buck stops with Mr. President.
Crisis of Faith
President Muhammadu Buhari was voted into office based on three main intervention areas. Security, Economic Growth and Anti-Corruption. The importance of a strong, vibrant justice system to a secure society, curbing corruption and supporting a growing economy, remains widely acknowledged. More seriously, the present unsatisfactory state of affairs seriously undermines the capacity of the system to fight the scourge of criminality plaguing our country.
Achieving any of Mr. President’s three intervention areas, will require prioritising the administration of justice. Sadly, as we approach the end of 2017, wherever we look, there is cause for concern. Indeed every aspect of our justice system is struggling and requires fundamental rethinking.
While these are serious enough concerns, there is another aspect of the current state of affairs, which despite having disastrous impacts, has been much neglected – the increasing collapse of the justice system as a protector of anyone other than the wealthy and powerful. We are facing a crisis of faith. Our justice system has become inaccessible to millions of poor people, threatening to erode the faith of our people in our justice institutions.
President Muhammadu Buhari has stated his commitment to ensuring a justice system that promotes constitutional values, is transparent, responsive and provides justice for all. Two years into his administration the country is grappling with how to translate this statement of commitment to tangible outcomes for all Nigerians and all communities, regardless of ethnic group, gender, money, social class or any other difference.
The state of our justice system, seems permanently in the public mind, but nearly always as a result of sensational incidents as reported by the media. The core concerns and solutions are rarely publicly debated. Government’s response to this emphasis on sensationalism, has been the adoption of ad-hoc measures to administration of justice management.
Is it too late?
Many justice sector stakeholders, have said that it is too late to expect any radical review of the justice system from the Buhari administration. We disagree. As simplistic as it reads, it is our view that, the Buhari administration will have made much progress in the sector, if the administration had provided leadership to a consultative process that will have lead to an acceptable policy framework and plan of action for the justice sector. Mr. President must seek consensus and try to help others to understand and embrace the need for reforms, and that involves explanation, consultation and sometimes persuasion, It is in line with this reasoning, that we urge Mr. President to consider the following zero budget consultations on the state of administration of justice system.
First, we ask that Mr. President meet with Justice institutions under the purview of the Executive. The Federal Ministries of Justice and Interior, including their various parastatals, agencies and institutions. We suggest the following agenda: (1)Review adequacy of Legal & institutional framework of each institution. (2) Identify forward looking interventions within the purview of the Presidency in council (3) Agree on strategies for improved coordination (4) Develop protocols for monitoring, evaluation, reporting and at least quarterly review meetings. Second, we ask that Mr. President meet with National Assembly, to discuss the need for a legislative agenda for justice sector reforms.
Third, we propose a meting with the Judiciary, based on a single item agenda- strengthening the judiciary.
A National Policy on Administration of Justice
The reports of these meetings, should then be placed on the agenda of the meeting of the National Council of States, with a view to seeking agreement on the framework for a National Policy and action plan on Administration of Justice. This will include who does what, when and within what timeframe. This should also include a budget, monitoring and report-back mechanisms. We believe that justice sector reforms stand a better chance of success when the government has a clearly stated policy, setting out the official vision of the reform objectives, and committing government to specific reforms necessary to realise that vision. This is an important reference point, for any strategic approach to justice sector development.
The Federal Ministry of Justice, recently facilitated a consultative process aimed at developing a National Policy on Administration of Justice. As commendable as this initiative is, it is our respectful view that, the nature of the challenges facing the sector and the gamut of what needs to be done, requires Presidential and not Ministerial intervention.
A National Policy on Administration of Justice should be the end product of a deliberate process of consultation between the Executive, Legislature and the Judiciary, with the active participation of the States. The National Policy on Administration of Justice that is proposed, should include a number of key policy priorities for example, the needs of poor, vulnerable and marginalised groups; promotion and implementation of zero tolerance for corruption within the justice system; access to Justice; gender; linking human rights with security and appropriate funding.
National Council on the Administration of Justice
It is worth repeating, that the goal of a justice system capable of upholding the principles of the rule of law remains largely a challenge, due in large part to a fragmented institutional structure and the resulting lack of co-ordination among the numerous levels of government and relevant justice institutions. The idea of a single forum in which the three arms of government, agencies with a justice sector mandate and civil society organisations, meet to discuss and agree on concrete interventions for the justice sector has long been proposed.
We urge President Buhari to consider the inauguration of National Council on Administration of Justice, to provide high-level policy making, implementation and oversight of interventions in the Justice Sector. Its mandate should be to ensure a coordinated, efficient, effective and consultative approach in the administration of justice and reform of the justice system.
In conclusion, much of this appeal to Mr. President, has been the subject of multiple articles and resolutions of several meetings and conferences on the justice sector. Therefore, if what we have written reads familiar, it is because sometimes, it is necessary to keep hammering away at the same issues until we reach a tipping point. It is our view that, we have reached that point.