The Chief Justice of Nigeria, Honourable Justice Ibrahim Tanko Muhammad, has hailed the President, Major Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (retd.) and the Vice President, Prof Yemi Osinbajo (SAN) for bringing the autonomy of the judiciary to fruition.
The CJN said this in remarks at the All Nigeria Judges’ Conference in Abuja, on Monday. He thanked the Executive for obeying the Constitution regarding the funding of the Judiciary.
He said, “Let me publicly acknowledge and thank the President of the federation, through his Excellency, the Vice President, for his complete obedience to the Constitution of the Federation concerning the funding of the Federal Judiciary.
“The negotiation driven by the Ministry of Labour, between JUSUN and the Governors Forum under the directive of the President is quite commendable, we appreciate this support.”
Tanko also commended the Vice President for his efforts in supporting the Judiciary expressing hope that the Senior Advocate of Nigeria would continue in his support.
“Luckily enough for us, the man seated with us happens to not only be one of us but very knitted into us. He knows the court very well, not because of a few years ago, but he has been appearing before us. We talk with him and we are sure he is ever ready to continue to listen and assist us,” the CJN said.
Meanwhile, the President, who was represented by Prof Osinbajo stated that the Judiciary was important in attracting foreign investors to the country.
He added that for the Judiciary to maintain its credibility it needed to be independent and professional.
The President said, “The extent to which we can attract business to our country depends in part upon investor perception of the quality of our justice delivery system. If we are seen as inefficient and ineffective, we would lose out to more efficient systems.”
“To maintain this revered position, and retain greater public confidence by the citizens, the Judiciary must be independent of all forms of interference and must maintain the highest level of responsiveness, professional standards, and integrity,” he added.
