…Says Nigeria’s Justice System Is Failing the People
Renowned legal icon, Jibrin Samuel Okutepa, SAN, has delivered a stinging critique of Nigeria’s judiciary and the wider legal profession, warning that the country is sliding deeper into injustice due to what he describes as a failure of courage, integrity, and commitment to true judicial independence.
In a blunt statement posted on his X account, the senior advocate declared that “you cannot fight for the independence of an entity that does not want independence,” insisting that Nigerian judges must take responsibility for their own freedom from political and institutional control.
According to him, “the judiciary can only be independent when the judges and judiciary decide to be independent. You can’t cry more than the bereaved.”
Okutepa lamented what he called a disturbing complacency within the judicial system, asserting that the arm of government constitutionally empowered to uphold justice now operates like a powerless subordinate.
“I see the judiciary feeling comfortable with the current state where an otherwise most important arm of government is being treated as an undignified househelp by those who should fear the judiciary. It is really sad. In all these, the masses suffer injustice,” he said.
“Justice Has Become Slow, Snail-Like — And Nigerians Are Suffering”
The senior advocate decried the agonising delays in Nigeria’s justice delivery system, citing the “current slow and snail processes in our courts” and a widespread disregard for court orders.
He said the situation has reached a point where “it is difficult getting quick justice in non-election-related disputes in our courts today.”
Okutepa warned that a society where citizens cannot rely on the justice system is one destined for instability and violence.
“In any society where people don’t get justice from the institutions created to give justice, there is always strife and insecurity,” he stated.
“Legal Profession Has Lost Its Way; We Must Return to Our Glorious Roots”
The SAN expressed deep worry that the legal profession — made up of the Bar and the Bench — has strayed from its founding ideals of fairness and purity.
“I wish the legal profession can retrace its steps and return to its glorious root of being light that can overshadow the darkness of corruption and injustice,” he said.
He criticised the growing habit of resolving cases on technicalities rather than substantive justice.
“Many things seem to be wrong with the way we as members of the profession give out decisions or proffer opinions that don’t take into account the need to do substantial justice,” he wrote.
He recalled a disturbing conversation with a colleague who said “justice is relative,” a statement he said “worried me to my bone marrows.”
According to him, “Justice is what is fair and just with undiluted purity. Anything other than that is unjust.”
“We Have Become Technical Juggernauts, Blind to Injustice”
Okutepa lamented that both lawyers and judges now hide behind archaic procedural rules, throwing out cases before they are heard.
“We throw away evidence on many technical grounds. We refuse to see injustice even when it stares us in the face,” he wrote.
While acknowledging that jurisdiction is fundamental, he cautioned that it has become overused as a weapon of injustice.
“We must be careful not to use this as an instrument of injustice,” he warned. “We must do all we can to see that cases are heard and determined on the merit rather than being thrown out at infancy.”
He added that even after judgments are delivered, lawyers play a major role in blocking enforcement through endless technicalities.
“We are the ones at the forefront of frustrating enforcement by resorting to many jurisdictional obstacles,” he said.
A Call for Urgent Reform
In his closing remarks, Okutepa urged both the Bar and the Bench to unite in rebuilding public trust in the justice system.
“The Bar and Bench must come together to fashion out how best we can attain good justice in Nigeria,” he said, lamenting that “there are no immediate remedies in Nigeria. Too bad.”
He called for a renewed commitment to fairness, logic, and common sense in the administration of justice, warning that Nigeria’s legal system is failing those it is meant to protect.
