​Position Of Judiciary On The Disparaging Game Of Thrones In Nigeria

Once again, as a young Nigerian and a compatriot with a great concern of a constitutionally balanced and guided country, I have overtime observed with keen interest, the State of Nigeria's judicial system and it's influence on several cases brought before our lordships across all levels of the system. Hence, I have come to realize and of which I keep asking myself if this was how our founding fathers created/designed our courts to be? Although, the fact undoubtedly remains that the courts are visualized to be the abode of God's conflict resolution centres here on the surface of the earth, but are our judges seeing themselves as agents of God in the course of their careers?.

Yes, the Judiciary in it's proper role is designed to be very distinct in nature from both the Executive and Legislative arm that makes up the three arms of Government. And this judicial arm is so powerful to the extent of interpreting the constitution while providing resolutions to every conflicts brought before her agents (Judges). Certainly, the founders actually intended for the judiciary to be independent that they have nothing to fear if it does not mix up in union with the other arms of government to redefine or misinterpret the law of the federation then it would have no reason to fear while carrying out it's constitutional duties and the country would have been a better place where sanity and appropriation would always be considered at every point in time.

But in this context, I have critically examined the role of the judiciary and it's influence on several cases with special focus on chieftaincy tussle and its implications on today's society. Chieftaincy declaration laws are no doubt the function of the legislative arm of government while the execution of the law becomes the duty of the Executive arm but it becomes the business of the judiciary if this laws are not properly regulated or executed. "Though the Court has no power to promulgate Declaration customary law, it has the competence to see whether a Chieftaincy Declaration is in conformity with prevailing customary law and accordingly declare it invalid if it does not. The Court therefore has power to set aside a registered Declaration that does not correctly declare the chieftaincy custom and tradition of the area concerned." The law on this is settled and it is that a High Court has the jurisdiction, competence or power to declare as void and set aside any declaration made and registered under a Chiefs Law, as to the prevailing customary law, if such a declaration is contrary to the actual customs, native law and tradition of the people affected.

The customs and native law which differs from one ethnicity, State and communities to the other, is what triggered my concern. In recent times, we now discovered that our courts are now being congested with Chieftaincy tussles where families and communities battle for many years over irregular appointments/installations of Traditional rulers and Chiefs, most especially when political interest is given priorities by government officials in the process of installing a candidate to fill a vacant stool. We have seen cases where government officials now influence candidates whom are not entitled or does not belong to the Royal lineage that is entitled to be installed as a traditional ruler, which inturn become matter of litigation which would eventually last for many years after passing through a thorough arguments from High Court, to the Appeal Court up to the Apex of the federation i.e the Supreme Court.

One would expect that the government officials whom are lucky to be in position of trust for certain term of office would see their positions as an avenue to always consider the law of posterity in their dealings, but the reverse is the case. These is where they run to the judicial agents (Judges) to ensure they bend the rules in favour of their candidates even if they know such person does not have any right to that chieftancy position, thereby offering juicy offering for their candidates to be protected or the court apply the means of unnecessary elongation in favour of the perpetrated fraud without giving reverence to the rules and regulations guiding court processes.

This menace has eaten so deep in our system to the extent where an Attorney General and Chief Law Officer who is constitutionally expected to protect and preserve and ensure justice, law and order in a State, collided with some judicial officials in order to forcefully install their interested candidate as an Oba against a lawfully declaration of a different family by the Supreme Court on the same Obaship Stool, this desperately made the perpetrators of this disgraceful act to result to falsification of documents and impersonation of warrant kingmakers, which now eventfully led to the same subject matter being litigated upon again. At the end of this shenanigan, they (including an Attorney General and Commissioner of Justice) all considered this abuse and slap on the face of our judicial system as a "Game for the throne".

It is high time we start reminding members of the judicial council starting from the Chief Justice of the Federation, all stakeholders in the judicial system such as the Body of Benchers, the Nigerian Bar Association, the National Human Rights Commission and all well meaning Nigerian activists to rise to the call of our fast demeaning judiciary and as a matter of urgency set up policies that will bring the era of “who know who” in Nigeria’s judicial system to a lasting end, for a country to succeed, utmost priority must be always be given to it’s Rule of law. 

- Ogbeni Ajibode Abd'kabir O.

ajibodekabir@yahoo.com