The Judiciary Staff Union of Nigeria (JUSUN) is at the centre of struggle for both financial and administrative autonomy of the Judiciary. MOSES JOHN speaks with President of the union Comrade Marwan Mustapha on the controversy over the order 10 recently signed by President Muhammadu Buhari.
Excerpt.
Judiciary autonomy
The struggle for the autonomy of Judiciary has started long before now, but it becomes open to the public when we filed a suit in 2014 in the Federal High Court in Minna, before it was later transferred to Abuja, Judgment was delivered in our favour and since then, there was no single state that has appealed against that judgment. Again, since it’s so, we inJUSUN adopt a sword approach in tacking the issue, because when you have a sword, you can use both side. So the first thing we did was that we took a more civil way by filling the suit, and after they failed to comply with the court judgment, we then took the other side of the sword which was embarking on strike and that strike has resulted to many things. Some of the things the action brough was that we reached an MoU, after an intervention by NBA as well as other stakeholders and so on. So, with the numbers of MoU we have entered and the judgment, fortunately for us, all those stakeholders that has put pressure on us to see reason to suspend the strike, today can vindicate us. This is because no single state governments in the entire country has complied or is complying with these three provisions of the constitution namely section 121sub 3, section 821 sub 3, and section 172.
Outcome of court judgment
So whatever the result is, we move. We started the garnishing of the account of some state government, but a lot of politics came into it and a lot of effort has been put in place until recently, when the new development of order 10 came into existence by the president of the federal republic of Nigeria. Though before then, the president had setup an implementation committee, known as presidential implementation committee on legislature and judiciary autonomy. So, the committee was put in place due to the alterations of the 1999 constitutions and i want to make this point clear for people to understand and appreciate. That is to say that the alterations has nothing to do with Judiciary, because nothing was infused in the constitution. If you look at section 121 sub 3 it’s there. But the state legislature were now accommodated in that provisions, the alterations of the constitutions was for the state legislature and not even the judiciary because there was nothing new . So, for us it was an advantage because it enlightened the public about the existence of that provisions without compliance, we celebrated it not because something new came into the constitution but because when the presidential committee was setup to see to the implementation of those provisions, we were all carried along because the committee consists of both the judiciary, legislature and all other stakeholders including the accountant general, the Governors Forum, the forums of the legislature, the head of speakers forum. In more than 7-8 months, we came up with recommendations and that was how the order 10 came into being.
Govs position on Order 10
Even though it has been signed by Mr. President, but the governors came in with another delay tactics, because none of the governors since 2014/15 came up to say that the interpretation of the constitution was not correct and none is also complying. if l give you a picture of some courts in the country, you’ll wonder if people will get justice in such a dilapidated structures. However, order 10 was signed and the governors came up with another delay tactics by making observation and other issues, so they went to the president to complain and a 7 man committee was constituted from the legislature, those who are representing the judiciary, although the union was excluded from that committee, but we took it in good fate. The report of the 7 man committee came up with the provisions that favoured the autonomy of the judiciary as a new recommendation, and it was after that committee that came out, then the governors also rushed to the Supreme Court and filed a matter. So since the matter is in the court and i don’t want to say much because the matter. Although we are not a party to it but it was the attorney general that they filed a case seeking for a refund of money that they Claimed it was use to taking care of the judiciary while it was the responsibility of the federal government since 1999, they went seeking for the same interpretation we went and got judgment on section 81 sub 3, but like i said, the matter is before the Court, and as the highest court of the Federation. So when the outcome is out, we trust it will be a good development because wes don’t have a problem, but our prayer is that hope it’s not a delay tactics to delay us.
Order 10 has come to stay
But I’m sure that nothing can stopped the continuation of the implementation of the committee, even if they seek an order, the order was not granted, so on that note am sure the committee is working hard to ensure the best, the technical committee has finished their work and even submitted it report to the president and the main committee. I am privilege to know that there’s nothing new, it’s the same issues they’ve been raising on the issues of financial autonomy and i have to thank our members for the patience, tolerance, including our principals and of cause the chief accounting officer, i have no reason not to commend the FG for their stance in ensuring the financial autonomy is realised, because even the word democracy we are talking about, without strict compliance to constitution and rule of law i don’t think democracy will thrive.
So far, that’s where we are, and while we are waiting from the other side, the verdict will come out soon on the issues of order 10, and we believe the committee is working hard to make sure the financial autonomy of the judiciary is realised. And i want to make it clear that the issues of financial autonomy is not negotiable and we will make sure it’s realised because that’s the only way to get fairness and justice and i challenge anyone out of the 36 states to go and see the type of court we have, and when i say court, it’s not only the superior or High court that’s called court, besides at times the cases that goes through the lower Courts is not even done in the superior court. In a day, the magistrate court, the sharia court, the customary court can attend to 20 to 25 cases. And we are in a mud house, we are in a rented shop in most cases, and how do you expect us to get justice there?
There are some states today that in the last 10 years, they didn’t receive capital projects from the executive arms of government, is that how one can get justice? Go and do your independent investigations and you’ll find out the dilapidated states of our court. Leave the capital project aside, come back to the court, the overhead of some court is receiving is nothing to ride home about, and when you need to eliminate corruption, in a situation whereby the paper your to write complain, or take litigations you don’t have it, you’ll have to ask the litigants to go and buy, or when you want to file a summon, you’ll ask a litigants to go and photocopy, you’re giving room for corruption.
Welfare of members
That we have not even come to the general welfare of the staffs, which we are pushing for special salaries, the salaries structures of the judiciary workers apart from those few peculiar allowances which we were able to get for our members which is even overdue, we have already written a letter and waiting for that review of the allowance of the judiciary workers because it’s only when you uplift or enhance that you’ll get what you want. So in a nutshell, that’s where we are in the issues of financial autonomy, and we will continue to pursue it, and make sure it is secured.
Khaleel death
Every mortal will face death one way or the other, i have lost a friend, a brother who i can describe as a blood brother, i was very close to the late NULGE President Khaleel. He was very humble, gentle, articulate and harmless person. I have known for a long time. For those of us who attended his burial, we have learned a very great lesson. On the day Khaleel died, i was in my room because we lodged in the same hotel. We arrived the same day and about to attend the meeting for World Decent Day at labour house, but i couldn’t attend because of other engagement of meeting of my sector, but Khaleel went there briefly. He left and we couldn’t see until when i arrived at my hotel in the evening.
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