Salvaging the Judiciary, the strongest institution in Nigeria! By KAYODE KETEFE The Judiciary of any nation plays a cardinal role in the harmonious co-existence of the populace-furnishing a popular medium of social engineering for resolving the conflicting interests that would otherwise induce fractious tensions in the polity. It is the bastion of hope, the succour for the downtrodden, and the vanguard of social justice. It is the proverbial reinforced concrete upon which the entire superstructure of social order is balanced. So when this hallowed institution is afflicted with self-destructive cancer of corruption or it succumbs to acquired virus of political interference, there is a genuine reason for concern-it means a potential force of centripetal implosion is about to be actuated. The Nigerian Judiciary, of recent, has been constituted into a great anvil upon which the acerbic hammer of severe criticisms has consistently been falling. It is uncertain whether or not the criticisms are the smoke of real, albeit yet-concealed fire or mere handiwork of malicious elements bent on defaming the honourable institution. But at the very least, all is not well. After all, these serious blows were administered not by malignant outsiders alone but also by respectable insiders who should be in the position to know. The hitherto sacred organ of the Judiciary is now reeling under the dreadful weight of serious, if unproven accusations. The Osun and Ekiti states election verdict allegations, the self-destructive Katsina-Alu/Salami saga featuring embarrassing accusations and counter-accusations; the latest letter (or petition?) of the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, Prof. Attahiru Jega, to the CJN ( President Jonathan was copied) to the effect that numerous "frivolous" ex parte orders are being slammed on INEC by the courts, threatening the forthcoming polls; the allegations that some senior lawyers/ judges were sent as emissaries by the politicians to compromise their fellow judicial officers in recent times, etc have, most probably unfairly, blotted the white linen of the justice institution in the minds of ordinary and not so ordinary Nigerians. Expectedly, the house-mending has begun, first with the NJC setting up reconciliation Committee to mediate between Katsina-Alu and Salami, secondly the inauguration by the NBA of committee to probe the various allegations; the third is the body of Senior Advocates of Nigeria's scheduled meeting to address the issues. Conceptually, the Judiciary is the least-prone, of all the three arms of government, to corruption. It is the postulation of this writer that the Judiciary, in spite of all, is still the least corrupt democratic institution in Nigeria! The reason is very simple, while there is no any specific requirement, other than basic O-level education for any person to be elected a legislator or even the Executive President; it is a different ball game for lawyers and judges who invariably constitute the Judiciary. Every member of a Judiciary is not only a graduate, but also someone who has undergone some special training conditioning him to be the advocate of the rule of law. To start with the Council of Legal Education engages in thorough screening of candidates before admission into the law school. Even after this the Honourable Body of Benchers would conduct its own screening before calling candidates to the Bar. In addition to this, if a person aspires to become a judge, he would first have to post ten years of unblemished record as a legal practitioner, after which he would have to brave the selection process of the appropriate Judicial Service Commission, then the NJC is ever at alert to cast him off the bench ignominiously if found to be corrupt! Even if a person did not set out as an honest person, all these would have equipped, even the most deviant character, with some measure of moral censorship. And suppose the indoctrination did not do it, what about perpetual fear of being disrobed or removed from the bench with ignominy? Which of the other arms has this kind of nurturing and self-cleansing for its members? This never means we don't have many corrupt lawyers or that there are no corrupt judges on the bench, one is only stressing that their propensity to be corrupt is far lower relative to members of other arms of government. That is the reason I have a great faith in the Judiciary. That is why I believe the Judiciary can survive the present crisis. But the 'house menders' should not seek to effect any cheap image laundering. The ongoing investigation should be real and conducted in manners that should be seen by all to be thorough, open and transparent to the members of the public. Anybody found culpable, no matter how highly placed, should receive commensurate sanctions and if the allegations are found to be false, at least the people would be convinced that a thorough job has been done to protect the sanctity of their hallowed institution.
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