Wednesday, May 21, 2025 - Former Kaduna State governor, Nasir el-Rufai, has alleged that widespread corruption and inefficiencies within the Nigerian judiciary are eroding public confidence in the system. Speaking during the Law Week event organised by the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Bwari branch in Abuja, el-Rufai criticised the state of justice in Nigeria, claiming that it favours the rich and powerful while failing the average citizen.
El-Rufai, who holds a Law degree from the University of
London, said delayed justice, procedural bottlenecks, and perceived judicial
compromise have become commonplace, leading to growing public disillusionment.
He noted that ex parte orders are increasingly being misused in political
cases, and accused some lawyers of exploiting the judiciary for political
advantages.
“In parallel, our judiciary, meant to be the bedrock of
fairness and order, is under intense scrutiny,” he said. “Concerns about
delayed justice, procedural inefficiencies, and in some cases, judicial
compromise (to put the matter delicately), erode public confidence.”
The former governor lamented the prevalence of forum
shopping and what he described as the weaponisation of ex parte orders, stating
that the legal system has diverged significantly from the ideals of justice.
“The growing perception that justice is for sale and available only to the rich
and powerful would cause the perceptive observer to conclude that what Nigerian
courts do is the administration of law and not the administration of justice,”
he said.
El-Rufai added that there is now a “seemingly unbridgeable
gulf” between law and justice in Nigeria, with judicial outcomes often
appearing to reflect the preferences of the executive rather than impartial
legal reasoning. He called on legal professionals to reflect deeply on the role
of justice in the country. “The demand on you, as practitioners in the temple
of justice, is a sober introspection as you contemplate whether indeed Justitia
is blind and whether she holds the scales of justice in fine balance,” he said.
He also directed criticism at the National Judicial Council
(NJC), accusing it of failing in its mandate to maintain disciplinary oversight
of judges. He cited opaque judicial appointments, inconsistent electoral
rulings, and lenient treatment of erring judges as symptoms of institutional
failure. “If we must be honest, we must admit that the perception of a high
level of judicial corruption is now mainstream,” he said
According to el-Rufai, the NJC has lost credibility and is
in urgent need of reform. He said the reverence once held for judges has
disappeared. “Once upon a time, ordinary citizens tiptoed past the homes of
judges. Not any longer. Now, judges are abused and maligned with almost
reckless abandon. They are physically and mentally assaulted, sometimes roundly
disrespected by the ordinary citizenry. How indeed are the mighty fallen.”
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