Poor Knowledge Of The Law Continues To Fuel Judicial Banditry In Nigeria

Poor Knowledge Of The Law Continues To Fuel Judicial Banditry In Nigeria  All over the world, countries are organized and governed via the c...

Poor Knowledge Of The Law Continues To Fuel Judicial Banditry In Nigeria 

All over the world, countries are organized and governed via the consistent adherence to its subsisting laws stipulated in its constitution by stakeholders of its government through the oversight functions of the country's judiciary.

The judicial arm, is one sector in every political arrangement that is constitutionally charged with, not only to interpret the law, but also to continuously checkmate the abuse and misuse of constitutional laws and powers by the executive and legislative stakeholders of a country and their citizens. The judiciary serve as the arbiter of justice, fairness and compliance to the Rule of Law in any given country. 

Countries whose government expresses reckless abandon and disregard to its own constitutional and ratified laws, are more or less grouped as Failed States. In a failed state, the actions of the government often creates a disproportionate level of abuse of power, violations of human rights, terrorism, corruption and brazen infestation of lawlessness in all other sectors within the political structure, including the judiciary.

However, when a state attains the characteristics that designates it as a failed state, there's high tendency that its judiciary has long been dead and sinking in the ocean of lawlessness and constitutional somersaults. Therefore, for a state to become a failed state, investigate properly, the judiciary of that country has long been dead and buried in the grave of administrative corruption and judicial banditry.

Nigeria, a fantastically corrupt country, cannot be excused from being described as a failed state. It is common knowledge that it's been long ago Nigeria reached this point of no return; maintaining the spot as a top failed country in Africa.  The dilapidated situation of Nigerian judiciary is a testament to the complete ruination ongoing in the country.

Poor knowledge of what the constituted laws states by Nigerian judges and justices are contributive factors influencing their scripted political judgements and pro executive pronouncements in the Nigerian courts. The constitutional bias, contempt  and Jerry picking of favourable subsisting laws to use in court rulings displayed by Nigerian judicial administrators, Nigerian judges, underscore the extent of banditry going on in the Nigerian judiciary. The once notable "hope of the common man" has been completely emasculated by excessive executive rascalities, judicial maneuvers, impartiality which the judiciary itself enabled and abetted over the years.

Furthermore , in the case of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu vs Federal government of Nigeria, presided by justice Binta Nyako, it is crystal and clearly stipulated by the Nigerian constitution that a judge (Binta Nyako) who recused self from a case, can no longer possess the jurisdiction to preside over same case. Again, the constitution provided a route through which such situation can be appealed and resolved before same judge can hear the case again. Despite these clear mandatory sections of the constitution, justice Binta Nyako, who had earlier recused herself from the case and without meeting the necessary procedures granted by the constitution inorder to reclaim her jurisdiction over the case, made a hasty u-turn and ran back to court to preside over the same case she recused herself from.  

What a blatant constitutional genocide?!. A classical example of poor knowledge of the law as written in the constitution by a respected justice Binta Nyako. With such act from a  revered justice of the federal high court, underscores the level of deep seated judicial banditry, carelessness and terrorism going on in the Nigerian judiciary. It is sickening and perplexing to observe that judges who are held in high esteem by the citizens could condescend so low into enabling constitutional corruption in their so called "shrines of justice".

It is unarguably evident that the poor knowledge of the law by most Nigerian judges, justices, lawyers and judicial administrators is responsible for fueling the widespread loss of judicial independence, deliberate misinterpretation of sections, subsections and acts of the law, consistent disdain on subsisting laws, constant miscarriages of justice and fairness in court rulings, increased level of executive pressure on the judiciary. Going by this trend, the Nigerian courts simply has lost its impartiality status to adjudicate cases and interpret the laws of the land.

Therefore, the Nigerian judiciary is in a critical state held captive by judicial-executive corruption, administrative misconducts and malpractices, including poor knowledge and application of the country's constitutional laws and procedures by those entrusted to know better and interpret the laws according to the constitution. These prevalent judicial decadence further affirm what Mazi Nnamdi Kanu opined in the court on 10th February, 2025 that the courts in Nigeria are now "Shrines of Injustice". Nigeria is irredeemably lost in its Failed State status as this is going to be a tough long ride for the citizens therein.

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