JUDICIAL OFFICERS URGED TO SHUN CORRUPTION

President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Joseph Bodunrin Daudu (SAN), has called on judicial officers across the country to be fearless, industrious and honest in carrying out their duties.

Speaking yesterday at the inauguration of six committees of the association in Abuja, Daudu said certain developments which have built up over the years have led to the conclusion that the Bench is at its weakest and most corrupt stage in the history of Nigeria.

'From the present Nigeria Judicial Council (NJC) records over the past seven years, only 20% of Judges are ranked as average or fairly good. The rest are simply not pulling their weight', and urged the NBA judiciary committee to, inter alia help to identify and flush out indolent judicial officers from the system.

While agreeing with the general complaint that Nigeria's justice sector is in decay, he blamed the poor infrastructure on improper funding of justice related issues and ideas which are not of this century.

'We are gravitating into trying times and there is a need for men and women of substance and calibre to stand up and firmly range themselves on the side of a true re-engineering of the Nigerian polity,' he stated and re-instated NBA's resolution to maintain and ensure sustainability of the rule of law in the country.

The committees that were inaugurated are NBA committees on judiciary, legislative advocacy working group, committees on local government system reform, justice sector reform, welfare and the criminal justice reform conference planning committee.