PRESS RELEASE
ABUJA, 14 APRIL 2015
UNODC Advocates Transparent and Merit Based Appointments for the Justice Sector in Nigeria
Nigeria is currently on the path to a more transparent and merit-based judicial appointment system, with the approval, in November 2014, by
the National Judicial Council (NJC), of the revised guidelines for the appointment of judicial officers. Revision to the guidelines followed a
Conference organized by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) under a multi-year European Union (EU) funded project to
reform the justice sector in Nigeria.
In July 2014, UNODC, in collaboration with the National Judicial Council (NJC), Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Access to Justice, and Open
Society Initiatives for West Africa (OSIWA), organized a Judicial Reforms Conference with the theme “Putting Our Best Foot Forward: The
Judiciary and the Challenge of Satisfying Justice Needs of the 21st Century.” The Conference, which was attended by top national and
international judicial experts, including the Chief Justice of the Constitutional Court of South Africa and the former Chief Justice of Nigeria,
reviewed extensively appointment, performance evaluation, and discipline of judicial officers at both the federal and state levels.
A major outcome of the Conference was the revision of the previous guidelines for the appointment of judicial officers, which was perceived to
be weak, non-transparent and vulnerable to abuse by political office holders and was not in line with international best practices.
“The revised guidelines would support the fight against corruption in the judiciary. It represents significant improvements with more clearly
established appointment and disciplinary processes that would enhance ethical conduct by judicial officers and restore confidence in the
administration of justice in Nigeria,” said Justice Mariam Aloma-Mukhtar, former Chief Justice of Nigeria.
“Judicial appointments are a gateway to the exercise of enormous judicial powers and authority. Where procedures of appointments are weak,
flawed or vulnerable, the outcomes of the process will likely reproduce those frailties and flaws,” said Joseph Otteh, Executive Director of a
non-governmental organization, Access to Justice. “The new guidelines will contribute to making Nigeria’s judiciary stronger and more
respectable, and strengthen its role as the defender of constitutional democracy,” he added.
Careful, consistent and unbiased implementation of the new guidelines will contribute to improving good governance and compliance with the
rule of law in Nigeria and help improve access to justice especially for the under-privileged Nigerians who are often left out in justice
administration.
Support to the Justice Sector in Nigeria is a 42-month project funded by the European Union with 26 million Euros and implemented by the
United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) to improve the effectiveness, accessibility, accountability, transparency, and fairness of the
justice system in Nigeria. The project is being implemented at the federal level as well as in nine states (Anambra, Bayelsa, Benue, Cross River,
Imo, Katsina, Lagos, Osun, and Yobe) and the Federal Capital Territory to support key initiatives of the Federal Ministry of Justice to drive a
coordinated, unified and integrated reform across the justice sector. END
For more information, please contact:
Ugo Sokari-George, Public Affairs Officer, Delegation of the European Union to Nigeria and ECOWAS
Tel: +234 (0)9 461 7800, Email: ugo.sokari-george@eeas.europa.eu
James Ayodele, Outreach and Communications Officer, United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC)
Tel: 234 701 683 9159, 234 802 976 8649, E-mail: james.ayodele@unodc.org
A project implemented by
United Nations Office on
Drugs and Crime (UNODC)
UN House, Central Area
Abuja, Nigeria
This project is funded by the
European Union
Delegation of
The European Union
to Nigeria and ECOWAS
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