Corruption war: Put your house in order, Buhari tells judiciary

President Muhammadu Buhari has expressed
concern over the delay tactics adopted by
some judicial officers and lawyers to
frustrate his administration's ongoing fight
against corruption in the country.
Speaking on Monday, July 18, in Abuja, while
declaring open a workshop on the "Roles of
Judiciary in the fight corruption", Buhari said
the corruption cases filed by government are
not progressing as speedily as they should
because the courts allow some lawyers to
frustrate the reforms introduced by law.
Buhari promises compliance
with Fiscal Responsibility Act
The workshop was organised by the
presidential advisory committee against
corruption in collaboration with National
Judicial Institute, Commonwealth Secretariat
and UNODC.
President Buhari at at the opening ceremony
of the workshop on the role of Judges in the
fight against corruption
According to him, if the country is to make
progress in its collective effort in the fight
against corruption, this needs to change,
adding that an efficient and fair judiciary is
key to the success of all anti-corruption
initiatives.
He urged the judiciary to remain impartial in
playing its role in the fight against
corruption, NAN reports.
" Now, in carrying out its role in the fight
against corruption, the judiciary must remain
impartial and be seen to be impartial.
"It is indeed incumbent on the judiciary to
carefully and fully analyse the facts based on
applicable law without prejudice and
penchant
regarding the case they are dealing with, and
without acting in any way that would favour
the interests of any of the concerned
parties.
President Buhari at a workshop
on the Role of Judges
"Where judicial corruption occurs, the
damage
can be pervasive and extremely difficult to
reverse ," the president said.
Buhari urged judges to hear and handle their
assigned cases without any external
pressure or influence and always
demonstrate manifest integrity.
According to him, judicial corruption
undermines citizens' morale, violates their
human rights, harms national development
and degrades the quality of governance.
He said the judiciary has a role to play in
the fight against corruption by enforcing the
applicable laws and ensuring that criminal
justice administration was not delayed.
The president restated his commitment to
fighting corruption which according to him
would remain one of the top priorities of his
administration in the hope of restoring the
economy and building a new Nigeria.
Buhari noted that eradicating corruption was
a collective task which involves all
stakeholders, including all levels of
government, the media and the civil society
and not only judges and members of the
legal profession.
He stated that the war against corruption
cannot be won if the judiciary is seen as
being distant from the crusade so it needs
to keep its house in order and to ensure that
the public, which it serves, sees it.
" The judiciary must fight delay of cases in
court as well as it fights corruption in its own
ranks, perceived or otherwise. We expect to
see less tolerance to delay tactics used by
defense lawyers or even the prosecution in
taking cases to conclusion ," Buhari said.
Buhari gave the assurance that the federal
government was committed to promoting
and supporting the judiciary to establish "a
judicial system that is well-staffed, well-
resourced, promotes and recognises
dedicated, committed and motivated judges.