Malami Asks Court to Dismiss Suit Seeking Increase of Judges Salary (Vanguard News)

The Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Abubakar Malami, SAN, has asked the National Industrial Court, NIC, sitting in Abuja, to dismiss a suit that is seeking the upward review of salaries of judges in the country.

The AGF, in a counter-affidavit and preliminary objection he filed before the court, maintained that a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, SAN, Mr. Sebastian Hon, who instituted the action, lacked the locus standi to do so.

Malami’s objection to the suit came on a day that Justice Osatohanmwen Obaseki-Osagie fixed to receive a report of a proposed out-of-court-settlement of the matter.

The court had on June 6, acceded to a request by the National Assembly, NASS, which is a defendant in the suit, for parties to be allowed to explore an alternative means of resolving the thorny issue of poor remuneration of judicial officers across the federation.

Aside from Malami, NASS and the National Judicial Council, NJC, the Revenue Mobilization Allocation and Fiscal Commission, RMAFC, was also joined as a defendant in the suit.

Meanwhile, at the resumed proceedings on Wednesday, Chief Adgboyega Awomolo, SAN, who led over 30 other SANs, as well as the President of the Nigerian Bar Association, NBA, Olumide Akpata, to announce appearance for the plaintiff, confirmed that he was served with Malami’s objection to the suit.

He, therefore, urged the court to allow the case to proceed to hearing of the originating summons that was filed by the plaintiff.

Likewise, Malami’s lawyer, Mr. Ekene Elodimuo, said the AGF, having filed the necessary processes, was also desirous of joining issues with the plaintiff in the course of the hearing.

However, the NJC, which engaged a SAN, Mr. Kunle Adegoke to present its position on the matter, prayed for a short adjournment to enable it to file its response.

Adegoke informed the court that he was briefed to handle the matter, less than 24 hours before the sitting, saying he would need time to study the originating summons to be able to file the necessary processes.

His request for an adjournment was not opposed by any of the parties, though there was no legal representation for the RMAFC.

Consequently, Justice Obaseki-Osagie, adjourned the matter till June 28 for hearing.

The plaintiff, Mr. Hon, SAN, is praying the court to compel the defendants to increase the salaries and allowances of judges in Nigeria.

In an affidavit he filed in support of the suit, the plaintiff, averred that as a legal practitioner, “who has practised in all the levels of courts in Nigeria, I know that poor pay for judicial officers is seriously affecting the quality of judgments and rulings those officers are delivering and the discharge of other functions associated with their offices.”

He argued that the current economic reality in the country required that salaries and allowances of the nation’s judges be urgently improved upon.

The plaintiff noted that the highest-paid judicial officer in the country – the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN) – currently earns about N3.4 million per annum, far bellow what is earned by such an officer in other countries.
As well as, an order, compelling the RMAFC or any other body assigned its responsibilities, “to, in perpetuity, review and continue to embark upon and carry out, in conjunction with the 3rd defendant (AGF), a yearly or at most a two-yearly review of the salaries and allowances of the judicial officers listed above, with a view to making the said salaries and emolument realistic and befitting of the offices and duties attached to/exercised by such offices.”