By Brave Dickson
A Port Harcourt-based lawyer, Barr Dan Oguowere has accused politicians of weakening the nation’s judiciary through the appointment of wrong judges and magistrates.
The legal practitioner who stated this in a chat with our correspondent said: “There are procedures and qualifications laid down for the appointments of judges and magistrates as prescribed by law.
“It is better according to Lord Denning (the master of the rules) to have good judges and magistrates who will interpret the law and apply it.
“When we have good lordships and bad laws, they can handle it. But when you have wrong lordships and good laws, it spelt doom for the dispensation of justice in the country.
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“And you can not have good appointments to the Bench for Justice delivery if the judiciary is not independent.
“The independence of the judiciary can not be mortgaged if Nigeria wants justice.
“Once the judiciary is an appendage of any arms of government, the dispensation of justice will be for sale because he that pays the piper dictates the tune.
“So, for a country like Nigeria, the Judiciary is the last hope of the common man, but we must not allow the appointment of lordships to be in the hands of politicians. Otherwise, justice will be only for the politicians and the common man is denied justice.
“We are lamenting today because our judiciary is not enjoying the independence that is required for the enhancement of justice and that is affecting our legal system.
“The negative effect is that people will lose hope on our court system and when this happens, the society will turn into the survival of the fittest and anarchy will be loosened.
“Therefore, the judiciary should not allow any arm of government to intrude on its independence.”
