Babalola gave the advice on Sunday in Ado Ekiti at the presentation of a book titled; “Testament of Judicial Pronouncements”, as part of activities to mark the retirement of Ekiti State Chief Judge, Justice Ayo Daramola.
”Worse still, unlike the Judges in those days who used to move around with their Police Orderlies into their gorgeous residences in the GRA’s, many Judicial Officers now live in rented houses in built-up areas and this is very risky. ”It has been acknowledged that the best Judges are the seasoned, tested and competent legal practitioners.”In England, seasoned Queen’s Counsels, the equivalent of our Senior Advocates, are invited to the Bench. Unlike what obtained in the 60’s and 70’s when we had few Senior Lawyers, Nigeria can now boast of hundreds of seasoned Senior Advocates today.
”Since I started practice in early 1960’s, I have never witnessed the closure of all the courts even for one day. ”As a result of the closure, the Police have not been able to charge any suspected criminal to court, while those who have cases in courts or those who want to file new cases are also affected.”It is a well-known fact that the Judiciary is the third arm of government after the Executive and the Legislature, and the situation can thus be likened to a human being whose ability to work depends on the arm, the legs and the eyes.
Source: Law Daily Report (lawdailyreport.net)