ESSENTIAL QUALITIES OF A JUDGE

Just recently a serving Governor under the ruling Peoples Democratic Party, Governor Sule Lamido said that the National Working Committee of the ruling party of the country is  inept and imbecile he said, adding: “I am short of words to express my pain. It is agonizing to see the party built in every home, in every village, town and cities all over Nigeria with lots of sacrifice being destroyed.”

Having imbeciles at the helms of affair in this country and the continuing years of corruption, the civil war, military rule, and mismanagement have largely affected all government institutions in which the Judiciary is one. Nigeria is endowed with diverse and infinite resources, both human and material. However, years of negligence and adverse policies have led to the under-utilization of these resources. These resources have not been effectively utilized in order to yield maximum growth.

In Nigeria Judges and Public Officers alike lacked integrity.

The judge being the pillar of our entire justice system, the public has a right to demand virtually irreproachable conduct from anyone performing a judicial function. Judges must strive for the highest standards of integrity in both their professional and personal lives. They should be knowledgeable about the law, willing to undertake in-depth legal research, and able to write decisions that are clear and cogent. Their judgment should be sound and they should be able to make informed decisions that will stand up to close scrutiny. Judges should be fair and open-minded, and should appear to be fair and open-minded. They should be good listeners but should be able, when required, to ask questions that get to the heart of the issue before the court. They should be courteous in the courtroom but firm when it is necessary to rein in a rambling lawyer, a disrespectful litigant or an unruly spectator.

Judges come to the bench after making a significant contribution to the legal profession and their communities. Many have been active in law societies and have done volunteer and charitable work.

They are to have in mind the essential qualities of a good judge which include but not limited to “integrity, honesty, knowledge of the law, willingness to listen, empathy, sense of fair play, patience and humility.

However, it is disheartening that the qualities were absent in the conduct of some judges, as well as public officers in the country.

Chief Judges in the Country should not hesitate to punish judges that flout the code of conduct for judicial officers.

The lack of these attributes could only diminish the high regard in which a judge is held, thereby making him unfit for the exalted position in the hallowed chambers of justice.

For instance, Some judges willfully flout court rules by not sitting at the statutory time of 9am for no reason at all, thereby contributing to the slow dispensation of justice.

In a bid to address the problem, the judiciary has proposed a Monitoring and Evaluation Unit to be established in the National Judicial Council to take administrative notice of such judges and forward their names to the council for disciplinary action.

The National Judicial Council should not shy away from taking appropriate steps to enhance the speedy disposal of pending cases and restoring confidence in the judiciary.

Consequently the justice department should ensure that the code of conduct for judicial officers was being reviewed in line with emerging developments in the society.