Legal practitioners have called on the federal government to increase the number of judges in Nigerian courts to reduce delays in the administration of justice.

They made the call in separate interviews on Wednesday in Abuja.

The legal practitioners, who spoke in separate interviews on Wednesday in Abuja, attributed delays in court cases to frequent adjournments, case backlogs, inadequate judges, missing case files, high filing and service fees, and unnecessary arrests by security agencies.

Simon Agwu said litigants often failed to get justice on time, and when they eventually did, it was usually too late.

“There are a lot of factors that contribute to delays in court cases, from litigants themselves to the lawyers and the judges. In fact, the whole justice system is involved in the delay,” he said.

Mr Agwu said litigants often caused adjournments by failing to give their lawyers accurate information about the case or pay their lawyers on time.

He also called for better facilities and an increased judiciary workforce to ease judges’ workload and improve the administration of justice.

“The system manpower is not enough. We don’t have enough judges such that you see a judge presiding over a large number of cases on the court’s docket in a day. The judge is human too, so more judges should be employed, facilities should be put in place to ease the workload, and artificial intelligence can also be incorporated into the system,” he said.

Abdullahi Muhammad said unnecessary arrests by the police and high costs of filing fees, service of processes, bail bonds, and legal services also contributed to delays.

Nanzim Alfred, a prosecutor, said judicial independence, the creation of more courts, the employment of more judges, and an upward review of judges’ salaries would help address the problem.

“The judiciary system needs to be independent, and there is the need to create more courts and employ more judges and increase their salaries,” he said.

Elizabeth Tanko, a businesswoman, said she had been attending court for three years without a conclusion to her case.

“My matter has been on for the past three years. I am still hoping to get justice someday, and I hope when I do, it is not too late. The court system in Nigeria is slow for the common man. From mention to hearing to judgment is a long process,” she said.

Another litigant, Emeka Kelechukwu, also urged the government to reform the judicial system.

“I am calling on the government to do something about cases staying for long periods in court because it is ordinary Nigerians that suffer this in the end,” he said.

A court clerk who spoke on condition of anonymity blamed some litigants for their lukewarm attitude toward their cases.

“The people themselves sometimes are to be blamed because they don’t follow up with their lawyers, and they fail to appear in court when they need to,” he said.

The lawyers said these reforms would help ensure speedy administration of justice in the country.

(NAN)