Senate Confirms Appointment Of Mohammed As CJN
Earlier Sen. Victor Ndoma-Egbe, the Leader of the
Senate, had activated Rule 40 of the Senate Standing
Rule to commence the screening of the new CJN.
Sen. Ike Ekeremandu, the Deputy Senate President,
cashed in on the proceeding to ask Mohammed some
questions.
Reports says that Ekweremandu's questions were on the need for special
courts, constitutional courts and the alleged dwindling
welfare of judges.
Sen. James Manager (PDP-Delta) wanted Mohammed to
provide answer to alleged conflicting decisions across
the country's courts.
The senator also wanted Mohammed's position on
current fusion of the offices of Attorney-General of the
Federation (AGF) and Minister of Juctice.
Similarly, Sen. Adeyeye Olusola (APC-Osun) had asked
the incoming CJN whether It was compelling to appoint
older justices as CJN.
Responding, Mohammed said the country did not
require special courts or constitutional court to
administer
fair justice.
"I do not support the call for special courts; the
challenge of the country's judicial System is mainly
personnel and not the court structure.
"Nigeria has one of the best judicial structures in the
world but still requires the right quality of personnel to
provide fair adjudication,'' he said.
According to him, "the structure of our court as
presently constituted cannot be said to be responsible
for the backlogs of cases across the country but rather
should be hinged on prosecutors''.
"There should be no reason why a case should stay in
court for more than three months,'' he said.
On whether the country should adopt a constitutional
court, instead of the current Supreme Court used for
the apex court, Mohammed said the status of the courts
wwas the same.
"It is a matter of nomenclature; the constitutional court
is used in countries colonised by the French while
countries that were under the British use the supreme
court.
They have equal jurisdiction,'' he said.
Mohemmed said "the country's Supreme Court has so
far been exemplary and there may be no need to alter
the name now,'' Mohammed.
Commenting on conflicting decisions from courts in
recent times, Mohammed said the rise in political
litigations had brought pressure on lawyers and the
courts.
"I accept that there has been a number of conflicting
rulings and judgments by judges.
" These are made possible as a result of interests. Some
lawyers and judges are responsible for this and it must
be dealt with,'' he said.
On the fusion of the offices of the AGF and the Minister
of Justice, he said the two offices would serve the
country best if separated.
On why the country had appointed older Justices of the
court as CJN, Mohammed said, however, that the
constitution did not compel the President to appoint
only older justices.
According to him, "the legal profession is hierarchical
and therefore maintains seniorities in both the bench
and the bar''.
"The wisdom, knowledge and maturity required to head
the apex court are acquired through a long professional
journey and before long you have become old,'' he
said.
Commenting after the voice votes had affirmed
Mohammed's nomination, the Senate President, David
Mark, expressed delight at the effort of the judiciary to
stabilise the country's democracy so far.
Mark said the country would undoubtedly benefit from
the appointment of Mohammed as the new CJN, saying
"the judiciary is an important arm of Government''.
"We are conscious of the fact that it performs vital role
in stabilising our Society and our democracy,'' Mark
said.
Earlier, the Senate allowed the Trade Malpractice
(Miscellaneous Offences) Act 2011 (Amendment) Bill
2014 to scale through the first reading.
NAN reports that the Electoral Act 2010 (Amendment)
Bill 2014 also scaled through first reading.
.
0 Comments: