I AM READY TO DEFEND JUDICIARY WITH MY LIFE. - Tanko Muhammad, CJN.



The Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Tanko Muhammad, says he is prepared to lay down his life to defend the independence of the country’s judiciary.

Justice Muhammad, who said this at the ongoing annual general conference of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) in Lagos, declared that the judiciary under him would continue to dispense justice without fear or favour.

The CJN said that he cannot be intimidated or cowed by anybody to undermine the judiciary or the administration of justice in Nigeria.

He said: “By the grace of Almighty God, I will tenaciously hold on to that even until that very moment of my last breath on earth. Let me assure this assembly, we don’t look at anybody’s face or feelings before making our decisions.

“If there is any deity to be feared, that deity is the Almighty God. We will never be subservient to anybody, no matter how highly placed,” he said.

Justice Muhammad noted that one of the fundamental issues affecting the independence of the judiciary was funding, especially at the state level.

 He, therefore, appealed to the stakeholders in the justice system to allow the judiciary to enjoy its independence through adequate funding.

The CJN said that allocations to the judiciary must be deducted from the first line charge so that heads of courts would not have to beg for funds from the executive arm of government.

Justice Muhammad condemned the actions of some lawyers who file cases that have been decided by the Supreme Court and cautioned them to desist from the practice of filing needless appeals at the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court, warning that the apex court would be unsparing in punishing “blatant abusers of the court processes.”

Muhammad said the attitude contributes to delay in the administration of justice in the country and declared that the apex court would continue to punish such lawyers in accordance with the rules of legal practice.

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