By Abdallah el-Kurebe
THE Sokoto State chapter of the Judiciary Staff Union of Nigeria (JUSUN) has observed that it is important for the judiciary in the state to be autonomous for it to be efficient and effective in the discharge of its constitutional mandate. In an exclusive interview with Saturday Vanguard, Chairman of the chapter, Abdulnasir Muhammad also called on Sokoto state government to fulfill its promise to fully give financial autonomy to the judiciary arm of government as pronounced in October last year, lamenting that since the announcement of the grant by the Commissioner for Justice, Barrister Suleiman Usman in October 2016, the judicial arm of government in the state was yet to enjoy same.
He observed that with the governor being a lawyer, there was no reason for the arm in the state to remain without autonomy. “The judiciary in Sokoto state, like in other states of the federation, needs financial autonomy in order to operate more effectively and efficiently. The state government convincingly told the people of the state that autonomy had been granted the judiciary but till date, nothing of sort is there. It is our belief that with our dear Governor being a lawyer, the state he governs should be one of those frontline states that should have autonomous judiciary,” he said.
It could be recalled that Barrister Usman had, during a ministerial press briefing at the NUJ Press Centre last year, stated that the governor had approved the payment of budgetary allocations that consisted of salaries, overheads and capital votes meant for the judiciary. “In order to ensure compliance with the constitutional provisions contained in sections 81(3), 121(3), 121(9), and 162(9) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 as amended, the governor of Sokoto state, Rt. Hon. Aminu Waziri Tambuwal has graciously approved the payment of budgetary allocations consisting of salaries, overheads and capital votes meant for the judiciary to the Heads of Courts in the state.
“With this development, the state judiciary is now financially autonomous as budgetary allocations consisting of overhead, personnel cost and capital projects will be paid to the Chief Judge and Grand Khadi,” he had stated.
However, Comrade Muhammad disclosed that “apart from the normal N15 million monthly allocations each to the High Court and Sharia Court of Appeal that have subsisted since the immediate past administration, the state judiciary was yet to enjoy any financial autonomy as proclaimed and in spite of the government’s statement that the judiciary will no longer go cap in hand begging for money when we want to work, has not come to fruition. The judiciary is still working under difficult financial atmosphere.”
JUSUN added that the judiciary in the state were under-staffed with the High Court having a total of 180 staff; the Sharia Court of Appeal, 367 staff and Judicial Service Commission (JSC), 36 staff. “The judiciary needs additional staff as well as enhanced salary for the staff,” he said.
Investigations by Saturday Vanguard reveal that although overhead and costs for capital projects were through the state by the Federal government, the judiciary only enjoys the N15 million each for the High Court and Sharia Court of Appeal.
The post Why Judiciary should be autonomous, says Sokoto JUSUN appeared first on Vanguard News.
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