On Wednesday, the Magistrates Association of Nigeria (MAN) in Bauchi decried the “poor condition of service” under which its members were operating.

During the association’s two-day New Year celebration, Abdulmumini Adamu, the association’s chairman, said magistrates were compelled to board commercial vehicles alongside litigants and other commuters, saying, “this has been exposing us to risk and subjecting the magistracy to ridicule.”

“We are referred to as resident magistrates, but we are without official residence or quarters in our duty posts. In the area of training and retraining, magistrates in this jurisdiction are lagging if comparison is to be made with other jurisdictions due to a lack of sponsorship,” the association. 

The association’s chair added, “The dynamic nature of the law demands mandatory, continued legal education and others, such as workshops, seminars and conferences, where topical legal issues are discussed.”

He noted that in the last term, magistrates were sponsored by the state government to attend the NBA conference and the National Judicial Institute was in 2018, “except by Zoom or online.”

The chairman, who called on the Bauchi government to look into the matter and enhance the condition of service of the magistrates, lauded Governor Bala Mohammed for assenting to the Financial Autonomy Bill, which guaranteed the independence of the judiciary.

He, however, stated that “since the law came into force in August 2022, the judiciary is yet to feel its impact.”

The chairman also complained that members’ take-home pay could not accommodate self-sponsorship, thereby subjecting them to professional stagnation.

He said this militated against the effective functioning of the judiciary and, by extension, hampered justice delivery and administration in the state.

“This is perilous. It renders the judicial system susceptible to corruption and monetisation of access to justice, making justice in favour of the highest bidder, God forbid,” Mr Adamu said.

(NAN)