0 GREAT EXPECTATIONS A SPEECH BY OKEY WALI SAN President , N igerian Bar Association AT A SPECIAL SESSION OF THE SUPREME COURT TO MARK THE COMMENCEMENT OF THE 2013/2014 LEGAL YEAR AND CONFERMENT OF THE RANK OF SENIOR ADVOCATES OF NIGERIA AT THE S UPREME COURT OF NIGERIA ABUJA NIGERIA 2 3 September 2013 PROTOCOL My Lord , the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Honourable Justice Mariam Alooma Mukhtar GCON , My Lords, retired Chief Justice of Nigeria, 1 My Lords, Honourable Justices of the Supreme Court of Nige ria , My Lords, Retire d Justices of the Supreme Court of Nigeria , My Lords, Heads of Courts in the Nigerian Judicature , Honourable Attorney General of the Federation, Mohammed Bello Adoke SAN , My Lords and Ladies from various Courts all over the country , Le arned Senior Advocates of Nigeria , Learned Benchers , new Members of the Inner Bar , My Learned Friends , Ladies and Gentlem en. INTRODUCTION Thank you for the privilege once again to speak at t he inauguration of a new legal year and investiture of new members of the inner bar. This is actually my second and final opportunity of this privilege as President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA). As my tenure as President of the Bar would have expire d by the n ext exercise in 2014. The NBA relishes this annual ho nour to present , through our President , a speech at the start of each legal year. We thank the Supreme Court of Nigeria for this prudent recognition of the role the NBA play s in the life of our profession and of course our dear Nation. The tradition of le gal year ceremony is one of those we have inherited from the English legal system, after which we have modelled our legal system. Historically, the service in Westminster Abbey, dates back to the middle ages, when Judges prayed for guidance at the start of the legal term. Judges whose courts were held in Westminster hall left the city and walked to the Abbey, to take part in the service. To date, the beginning of October marks the beginning of the legal year in England and Wales and these colourful ceremoni es still take place. We have also adopted the practice of the investiture of new Seni or Advocates of Nigeria at the special Court session marking the com mencement of the new Legal year, at the Supreme Court. That said, let me on behalf of the Nigerian Bar Association , congratulate, my Lord the Chief Ju stice of Nigeria , the President of the C ourt of Appeal , All heads of Courts and the entire Judiciary, for 2 the successes of the last legal year. Within the limits of facilities available, you have done very we ll. 1. Leadership of the Bench One thing in our judgment that is most remarkable of the last Legal year is the efforts of the C.J.N to sa niti ze the Bench . That is not to say that there have not been other milestones in the year under reference. As President of the NBA, I am happy to say that the B ar’s Great e xpectations of the B ench under the leadership of Chief Justice Mariam Alooma - Mukhtar GCON have largely been met . Our Chief Justice started her historic tenure by attacking corruption and inefficiency on the bench. Several judges have undergone or are undergoing disciplinary measures for corruption or even apparent corruption . I stress this facet of the CJN’s leadership because it coincides , in time and theme, with my emphasis as NBA President. When the head of the Bench and the head of the Bar fight virtually identical battles, victory is assured. Our Chief Justice has worked assiduously towards restoring confidence in the judiciary through the disciplinary mechanism of the National Judicial Council (NJ C). Unfortunately, NBA’s representatives at the National Judicial Council are excluded from disciplinary proceedings against judges. We call for a change to include the NBA in all facet s of the judicial - reform process , including judicial discipline . We hav e repeatedly called f or the repeal of whatever law/rules or regulation relied upon to exclude the members of the Bar at the National Judicial council , from part icipating in such deliberations. O ne recollects that this had once led to the withdrawal of memb ers of the B ar from NJC, only to return after promises by the NJC that the issue would be address ed very quickly . Over one ye ar of 3 our return, the situation is yet to change. The point must be made , that this is not about self aggrandizement b y members of the B ar or those on the NJC , rather it is about the fact that we are major stakeholders in the justice sector, which is why we are on the NJC. We do not get this limited recognition on the NJC. If we are to be any part of the NJC, we must be a part for all purposes. At the risk of sounding immode st, we understand what is going on mo st, and if l et in, will bring alot of value to the work of the NJC in that direction, all in the greater interest of the justice system and our dear country. Judicial reform mu st continue to emphasize corruption, not because it is prevalent but because it is totally unacceptable. Most Nigerian judges are honest. The corrupt ones are in the minority. That is why instances of judicial corruption make news. Judicial honesty is la udable, but an honest judge may still fail to do a good job. A judge who habitually sits late, or adjourns cases at the slightest excuse, or delays proceedings, or fails to deploy modern case - management techniques, is not doing a good job , even if he or sh e is scrupulously hon est. Like I h ave always said, the Bar will at all times, gi ve maximum support to the C.J.N in sanitizing the Nige ria n Bench . 2. Senior Advocates of Nigeria 2 .1 NBA Salu tes New Silk s Today marks not just the start of the legal year, but also the induction of new Senior Advocates of Nigeria. As a member of the Inner B ar myself, I warmly welcome the new silks to the inner temple of our honoura ble profession . You now share with us , old silks , the responsibility of professional leadership that the rank of SAN imposes. By being initiated into the inner most sanctum of the B ar, you have already shown sufficient proof of professional achievement and competence. You are good at what you do: the practice of law. 4 But professional excellence is not all there is to leadership. By your new position, you must model the profession to colleagues and juniors, and also to the nation at large. You must be good ambassadors of the profession and its parent body, the NBA. You must be defenders of our Consti tution, guardians of our liberty, advocates of just causes, protectors of the powerless, and wise counsellors of our society. With your entry into the inner bar , you are marked as different. You take on a responsibility above and apart from the rest of you r profession. You must accept new obligations, new standards, and new principles. It can be a burden, but with a lot of honour. Please , do not pick some e merg ing bad habits we are no ticing at the Bar, regrettably, sometimes, even at the inner Bar. For s ome, taking silk means, getting rich over night, which sometimes manifests in fights for briefs, sometimes in open court. Lack of courtesy to collegues and even to the court. Most rampant, addressin g the press, fully robed on on - going cases and all conceiv able issues, sometimes even against the official positions of the NBA. For your information, and for all concerned, the NBA, has only one spoke s person, that is the President of the NBA. As we must not speak at cross purposes. Taking Silk is no licence to speak for the NBA. Some of our collegues live at radio and television stations and newspaper houses , commenting on all manner of issues. Please do not join them in denigrating the rank. It is professional mi sconduct and there is an existing resolution of t he NBA - NEC, to take disciplinary actions against such erring members. Beyond press statements, we also have the issue of advertisement. As stated above , addressing the press fully robed, at the sl ightest provocation, or presumed cause , advertisements in the newspapers ..
Posted on: Mon, 23 Sep 2013 17:38:05 +0000
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