By Ogalla Daniel
The Chief Judge of Kogi State, Hon. Justice Josiah Majebi, has inaugurated a committee for the review of the state’s High Court (Civil Procedure) Rules just as Judges of the court proceed on a week’s break to mark the Easter celebration.
The high-powered committee was inaugurated at the state’s judiciary headquarters in Lokoja, the state capital with Hon. Justice Abdul Awulu as its Chairman and Hon. Justice Moses Gwatana as the Vice Chairman.
Speaking on the imperative of having the Rules reviewed, the CJ disclosed that the current rules guiding procedures in the High Court of Justice were enacted into law 19 years ago when the pioneer Chief Judge of the state, Hon. Justice Umaru Eri CON,(Rtd), made and brought the Rules into effect introducing “some remarkable innovations into the civil litigation landscape” in the state.
“However, as with most systems of law, there is always room for further innovations, modifications and improvements aimed at achieving better degree of conformity with contemporary practices”.
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The review of the Rules, added the CJ, was therefore, an urgent reform needed for administration of justice in the state to adapt to evolving technological developments with a view to enhancing civil litigation process that would meet modern civil litigation procedures.
“These reforms will prioritize technology integration, procedural efficiency and case management flexibility fostering a more robust and accessible Justice system” he further emphasised.
While expressing confidence in members of the committee to deliver on the responsibility entrusted on them, Justice Majebi enthused on expecting to receive an all-encompassing Rules at the end of the one-month given to the committee while also reckoning with the credibility and pedigree of the committee members.
He comparatively recounted that rather than constitute themselves into clogs in the wheels of progress of the state judiciary, and the legal profession as some legal practitioners of the state origin are doing, the committee members selected from the Bar, in particular, have notably been known to be selflessly contributing immensely and adding values to the judiciary and the legal profession over decades instead of “throwing stones” on the state’s judicial sector from outside like those he described as “accidental lawyers” who shouldn’t have been found in the legal profession.
He was thus optimistic that the involvement of the calibre of those engaged in the committee would further show direction to others on how best to collectively attain goals that would be beneficial to the legal institution and future generations of lawyers.
According to the CJ, members of the committee were carefully selected based on their integrity and long-standing records of progressive sacrifice and legal records in the administration of Justice saying he had no doubt that the recommendations of the committee would be the best in the country.
“You have been carefully selected to review the Kogi State High Court (Civil Procedure) Rules, 2006, and your appointment is born out of your sterling records of progressive sacrifices and commitment to the legal sector and the administration of justice” he disclosed. He urged them to be steadfast and bring the realities of the prevailing economic order in the country to bear on their review.
Highlighting on some areas crying for review in the Rules, the CJ noted such key areas as the need for technological integration like the introduction of electronic filing and virtual proceedings; total review of fees, including filing and affidavit fees as he said the current fees do not reflect prevailing economic realities; issues of pre-trial conference and case management and Arbitration and Alternative Dispute Resolution “practices in tandem with the Arbitration and Mediation Act, 2023 amongst others.
Responding on behalf of his members in his acceptance speech, the Chairman of the committee, Hon. Justice Awulu, appreciated the CJ for believing in their capacity to serve the state while also offering not to take the task ahead of the committee for granted.
He further acknowledged the importance of the assignment concurring that the Rules presently in use has been in effect for long and require a holistic review to which his committee would devote itself absolutely for the benefit of the institution, the legal profession, Kogi state and the nation in general.
He thanked the CJ for the painstaking effort at picking competent hands that constitute the committee and promised that they would put in their best to arrive at the desired result within the stipulated time.
On her part, a member of the Kogi State Council of Judges, Hon. Justice Angelina Salihu, lamented the limitations of the Rules to be reviewed stating that the review was necessary after it had served its purposes for almost two decades. She thanked the CJ for the well-thought out initiative with particular reference to the current unrealistic fees and the possibility of a new Rules making lawyers sit-up in addition to the new Rules enhancing effective justice administration delivery in the state.
Other members of the Committee that are spread across the Justice sector of Kogi State are Elder Alfred Akpala, ESq. and Sam Owoyomi Esq. from the Nigerian Bar Association and Dr. Abubakar Zekeri and Sani Alhassan Esq. of the Ministry of Justice. They also include others from the judiciary who are
Hon. Tanimu Muhammed Esq. and Nimah Isah Esq. who are Readers; Mr. Oladele Shola and Labaran Abdulhameed who are Data Processors and Majebi Amos and Mathew Emmanuel who serve as Clerks while Hon. Umar Abraham serves as the committee’s Secretary.
In a related development, pursuant to Order 9 Rule 4(1)(b) of the Rules about to be reviewed, Judges in the state will proceed on a vacation that will last between 21st and 28th April, 2025 for the Easter celebration. While the these two days are inclusive in the holiday, normal court sittings will resume on Tuesday, 29th April, 2025, though the Judges will be able to “attend to urgent motions upon applications by either of the parties to a motion or by their respective counsel” during the vacation.
