The Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Abubakar Malami, SAN, has asked the National Industrial Court, NIC, to dismiss a suit seeking the upward review of salaries of judges in the country.
The suit is praying the court to compel the defendants to increase the salaries and allowances of judges in Nigeria.
Justice Osatohanmwen Obaseki-Osagie’s court scheduled Wednesday to receive a report of a proposed out-of-court-settlement of the matter. His decision was informed by the request by the National Assembly for parties to be allowed to explore an alternative means of resolving the thorny issue of poor remuneration of judicial officers across the federation. Beside the AGF and NASS, the National Judicial Council, NJC, the Revenue Mobilization Allocation and Fiscal Commission, RMAFC, are also joined as a defendant in the suit. But in a counter-affidavit and preliminary objection filed before the court, Malami insisted that Chief Sabastine Hon (SAN), who instituted the action, lacked the locus standi to do so. Chief Adgboyega Awomolo, SAN, who led over 30 other SANs, as well as the President of the Nigerian Bar Association, NBA, Olumide Akpata, to announce appearance for the plaintiff, confirmed that he was served with Malami’s objection to the suit. Awomolo urged the court to allow the case to proceed to hearing of the originating summons that was filed by the plaintiff. In his submission, counsel to Malami, Ekene Elodimuo, said the AGF, having filed the necessary processes, was also desirous of joining issues with the plaintiff in the course of the hearing.
However, the NJC, through its counsel, Kunle Adegoke SAN, prayed for a short adjournment to enable it to file its response.
Adegoke informed the court that he was briefed to handle the matter, less than 24 hours before the sitting, saying he would need time to study the originating summons to be able to file the necessary processes.
His request for an adjournment was not opposed by any of the parties, though there was no legal representation for the RMAFC.
Consequently, Justice Obaseki-Osagie, adjourned the matter till June 28 for hearing.
In an affidavit in support of the suit, Hon averred that as a legal practitioner, “who has practised in all the levels of courts in Nigeria, I know that poor pay for judicial officers is seriously affecting the quality of judgments and rulings those officers are delivering and the discharge of other functions associated with their offices.”
He argued that the current economic reality in the country required that salaries and allowances of the nation’s judges be urgently improved upon.
The plaintiff noted that the highest-paid judicial officer in the country – the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN) – currently earns about N3.4 million per annum, far bellow what is earned by such an officer in other countries.
More so, the plaintiff, who quoted what all judicial officers currently earn as provided under Part II(B) of the Schedule to the Certain Political, Public and Judicial Office Holders (Salaries and Allowances, etc) Amendment Act 2008, argued that such meager remuneration was the reason many bright minds are discouraged him from aspiring to become judges.
He further drew attention of the court to the fact that salaries of judges have not been reviewed in the past 14 years, despite the loss of value of the Naira vis-à-vis other global currencies.
As of November 2008 when the amended Act was in force, the exchange rate between the naira and the US dollar was N117.74 to USD1.
“The Naira has considerably lost its value over time; but judicial officers in Nigeria have been placed on the same salary scale for up to 12 years, namely since 2008,” he added.
He is among other things, praying the court for, “a declaration that by a combined reading of the provisions of section 6(1)(b) and (d) and Parts A and B of the First Schedule to the Revenue Allocation Mobilisation and Fiscal Commission Act, Cap. R7, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004, it is unconstitutional for the 2nd defendant (RMAFC) to refuse or neglect to upwardly review the salaries and allowances of the judicial officers notwithstanding the changing local and international socio-economic realities”.
“An order compelling the defendants to forthwith activate measures to urgently review judicial officers’ pay, raising that of the CJN to a minimum of N12m monthly, N11m for other Justices of the Supreme Court and Court of Appeal President; N10m for other Justice of the Appeal Court, the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court and President of the National Industrial Court (NIC)”.
An order to compel the defendants to raise the monthly minimum take-home of a judge of the NIC to N9m; N8m for Chief Judges of High Court of state sand the Federal Capital Territory, while the other judges are entitled to N7m.
As well as, an order, compelling the RMAFC or any other body assigned its responsibilities, “to, in perpetuity, review and continue to embark upon and carry out, in conjunction with the 3rd defendant (AGF), a yearly or at most a two-yearly review of the salaries and allowances of the judicial officers listed above, with a view to making the said salaries and emolument realistic and befitting of the offices and duties attached to/exercised by such offices.”
Credit: Daily Sun