Judges Shouldn’t Manage Judiciary Funds, Says Falana-led Coalition

• Falana-led ASCAB described as embarrassing, the mismanagement of public funds by chief judges and chief registrars.

According to the Alliance on Surviving COVID-19 and Beyond (ASCAB), which is led by human rights activist Mr. Femi Falana (SAN), the Judicial Staff Union of Nigeria (JUSUN) and the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) should create an accountability system that will prevent judges from handling funds budgeted for the judiciary.

This was reported in a statement signed by Falana that was released yesterday and titled, “ASCAB Seeks Transparency Mechanism to Manage Funds for the Judiciary.”

The process, according to ASCAB, will prohibit judges from being subjected to excessive legislative intervention or prosecution by anti-graft agencies.

This, according to the community, would encourage judges to focus on their core constitutional mandate of administering justice in an environment of independence and impartiality, in accordance with international best practices.

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The group also mobilized support for the strike, stating that it was intended to put into effect specific provisions of the Nigerian Constitution, which mandates that any sum held to the credit of the judiciary in the federal or state government’s Consolidated Revenue Fund be paid directly to the heads of the courts concerned.

The statement read in part, “The ongoing industrial action by JUSUN is highly commendable. Since the strike is geared towards the promotion of the independence of the judiciary, it is fully supported by the entire members of ASCAB.

“However, ASCAB has noted that in some states where limited financial autonomy has been granted by the executive, the fund earmarked for the judiciary was alleged to have been diverted by some heads of courts.