Chief Justice Clarifies

Following reports of petitions to His Excellency the President from litigants regarding what they perceive to be the lack of lustre and inordinate delays in the manner their cases are being handled, the office of the Chief Justice has viewed that such petitions should be sent to His Lordship’s office.

In a news release sent issued to this paper yesterday, the office of the Chief Justice noted that litigants are entitled to petition the President if only because they are aware that His Excellency eschews injustice in whatever shape, form or manner.

The petitions, according to the release, should be submitted to the office of the Chief Justice where they will be considered on a monthly basis by a committee that has been set up, instead of sending them to the office of the President.

Herewith we reproduce the full version of the release from the office of the Chief Justice.

The office of the Chief Justice is aware of a deluge of petitions to His Excellency the President from litigants regarding what they perceive to be the lack of lustre and inordinate delays in the manner their cases are being handled. They are entitled to petition the President if only because they are aware that His Excellency eschews injustice in whatever shape, form or manner.

The office of the Chief Justice would, wish to advice that instead of sending petitions to the office of the President, aggrieved persons should send their complaints to His Lordship’s office where a committee has been set up to consider such matters on a monthly basis. Such petitions must always state the parties in the case, the number of the case; the Judge or Magistrate handling the matter and the lawyers involved, and give a brief description of the facts of the case. Other petitions regarding matters that are not before the courts can be addressed to the Judicial Complaints Board.

Litigants in far-flung areas of the country may, for the time being, lodge their petitions with the Governors of their regions from where they will be collected by the committee.

The office of the Chief Justice is aware that the Judiciary is the last bastion of hope for the ordinary citizens. In this regard, we totally anchor the actions of any judicial officer that smacks indifference and insensitivity to the plight of genuine litigants. We are bent on establishing the extent of the judiciary’s responsibility from among the petitions received.

We want to make it abundantly clear that such an effort is not meant to open the floodgates for all types of frivolous, unmeritorious and long abandoned matters which are beyond redemption. Only genuine concerns should be dealt with.

We wish to assure that we will do everything within our power to deliver justice to all manner of people within the shortest possible time.