President of the Nigerian Bar Association NBA, Mazi Afam Osigwe, SAN, has called for a radical expansion of judicial reforms to cover commercial, criminal and fundamental rights cases, arguing that the current “time-bound” success seen in election petitions could be replicated across all sectors of the legal system.
Speaking on Monday at the public presentation of the book “The Bar, Bench and Good Governance in Africa: Legal Essays in Honour of Afam Osigwe, SAN,” the NBA president lamented that while the country has mastered speedy resolutions for political disputes, the “simple transactions that drive the economy” remain bogged down by delays.
Osigwe emphasized that restoring public confidence is inextricably linked to the predictability and speed of court judgments. He noted that the judicial system’s credibility is currently at risk because citizens feel they are “getting judgment without getting justice.”
“We seem to have got it right in having a constitutional amendment that ensures that pre-election matters and electoral matters are delivered within a certain time, but not about commercial transactions, not about criminal trials, not about fundamental rights, not about simple transactions that will drive the economy,” Osigwe stated.
He clarified that the NBA cannot achieve these goals in isolation and stressed the need for a unified front, calling for the “buy-in of the government, the legislature and the judiciary,” as well as the active participation of the media to influence policy decisions.
Addressing the role of the Bar in governance, Osigwe defended the association’s right to critique the system, provided such criticisms lead to “workable solutions.”
He argued that the Bar’s strength lies in its advocacy for legislative and judicial reforms, particularly in amending court rules and ensuring merit-based appointments to the bench. He was equally firm in his call for internal accountability within the legal profession.
“We must do it with a view to solving problems and proffering workable solutions, also holding accountable the judicial officers who make it difficult for us to have good governance by their own decisions, and our colleagues who file cases that have no basis.”
The NBA president expressed deep concern over the “dwindling public confidence in the judiciary,” citing a lack of consistency in judgments as a primary reason why people are abandoning the courts.
“We are worried that, increasingly, people are leaving the courts, believing that they get judgment without getting justice. By believing that there is no predictability, that there is no consistency in some of their judgments,” he warned.
While acknowledging that the issues, ranging from conflicting decisons to the need for a mindset shift among litigants and lawyers, cannot be solved in a “one-minute interview,” Osigwe insisted that the path forward requires a “holistic conversation” and a steadfast commitment to making reforms work.
The book presentation served as a platform for senior members of the Bar and Bench to interrogate the role of the legal profession in promoting accountable governance across Africa.
