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1.On the 9th of April, 2005, I delivered a paper to the COMMITTEE ON JUDICIARY AND LEGAL REFORMS OF THE NATIONAL POLITICAL REFORM CONFERENCE titled “DELAY IN THE ADMINISTRATION OF JUSTICE & ALTERNATIVE DISPUTE RESOLUTION (ADR). #DASAN
2.I find that many of the issues raised are still cogent and germane this very day, hence my thought to share snippets of that paper with some of my learned colleagues and followers here on Twitter. #DASAN
3.The Judiciary is the guardian of the constitution, the protector of government under the Rule of Law, the guardian of the Fundamental Rights of the people, the interpreter of all laws without which the society will be threatened. #DASAN
4.The Judiciary is also the maintainer of public order and public security, they guarantee against arbitrariness, and perhaps the insurance for a just and happy society. #DASAN
5.The Judiciary occupies a pivotal position in the Administration of Justice system. However, Administration of Justice involves other institutions, agencies and persons such as: -The State, the Police, the Prisons, Lawyers and even the individual litigators. #DASAN
6.The discussion on delay in the Administration of Justice in Nigeria and suggestions to reduce, or possibly terminate it will involve the contributions from these institutions, agencies and persons. #DASAN
7.The bedrock of any Democracy is an efficient and effective system of Administration of Justice. Regrettably it is generally believed that the system of Administration of Justice in Nigeria today is less effective, less efficient and less satisfactory. #DASAN
8.The reasons for this are multifarious. The most serious of which has been the issue of delay in our Administration of Justice. The delays inherent in the present system are contributed by each and every one of these Institutions, Agencies and Persons enumerated above. #DASAN
9.The subject of Administration of Justice is a wide one but for this purpose, I shall focus on the Courts, the Lawyers and the Litigants, which are just some of the institutions, and persons that constitute the machinery for the Administration of Justice. #DASAN
10. A visit to our High Courts (a court of 1st instance) will readily reveal not only the existence of cases as old as 6-7 years but such cases may still be considering pre-trial and interlocutory proceedings. #DASAN
11.The scene generally in Nigeria today is that litigants only know the commencement of actions but do not know when such actions will be concluded. This state of affairs certainly must not be allowed to continue. #DASAN
12.The effect of delay in the Administration of Justice can be summarized with the age long statement of “Justice delayed is Justice denied” Other effects include; exhaustion of finances, patience and hope. Loss of confidence leading to self-help remedies and lawlessness.
13.Instances of such lawlessness abound in Nigeria today as exemplified in several incidences of lynching of suspected thieves, violent destruction of properties, criminal ship and otherwise of civil transactions like reporting failure to pay loans to EFCC, Police e.t.c #DASAN
14. It must be stated that the structures and facilities provided by the State for the Administration of Justice are totally unsuitable. Court Halls and Offices are lacking in most places, and, even where they exist, they use outdated & dilapidated Office equipment and machinery
15. In this computer age, our Judges/Justices are still writing in longhand, when the world is interconnected to the Internet.There are no good Law Libraries nationwide. Law books and Law Reports are lacking and some High Courts do not even have an up-to-date Law Reports. #DASAN
16. Some do not even have one completed set of the Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004. Stationery and Allied equipment are totally lacking, so proceedings, judgments and rulings are delayed, and even when they are issued, it is very difficult to obtain Certified True Copies.
17. The same problems confront the Ministries of Justice, the Police and the Prisons, and all other such facilitating agencies established by the State for the Administration of Justice. #DASAN
18.Electricity is usually interrupted, and many courts have no alternative source of power supply. Broken-down vehicles and equipment cannot be repaired because funds are either not available, or are not duly released, as and when required. #DASAN
19.And so the Courts cannot function, the Lawyers in the Ministries of Justice cannot prepare their papers for filing, the Police cannot conclude their investigations and bring suspects and case files to Court. #DASAN
20.The Forensic Science Laboratory cannot issue necessary reports, and so on and so forth. Exhibits are also prone to being mishandled and sometimes manipulated. #DASAN
