Declare emergency in Bayelsa judiciary – NBA

The Nigerian Bar Association, Bayelsa State chapter has decried a dearth of facilities in the state’s judiciary
system and appealed to the government to declare a state of emergency in the sector. The state NBA Chairman, Mr. Azebi Anthony, also lamented the decay in the Legal Faculty of the Niger Delta
University, Wilberforce Island, saying that its over 265 graduates had yet to attend the Law School. Anthony spoke in Yenagoa on Tuesday during the special court session held at the High Court complex as
part of activities to mark the Legal Year in the state. He advised that the existing state of emergency in the educational sector be extended to the faculty to enable
it to develop the required manpower for the state judiciary. He said the faculty should be upgraded to enable the quota of the faculty to increase from 40 to 100. Anthony condemned the poor state of the Department of Public Prosecution, observing that the Director of
Public Prosecution operated in the department as a “hostel master”. He said there was an urgent need to partition the department and equip it with facilities to ensure quick
dispensation of justice. Asking the government to approve wardrobe allowance for key judiciary officers, he called for the continual
training of workers in the sector. The NBA chief also called on the government to liaise with the Ministry of Internal Affairs to ensure early
completion of Okaka prison. He asked the government and the Commissioner of Police in the state to monitor the activities of the special
police outfit, codenamed, Operation Doo-Akpo to avoid the pitfalls of the disbanded Operation Famou Tangbei. In her remarks, the state Chief Judge, Justice Kate Abiri, said four judicial workers died in the concluded legal
year. Abiri, who failed to disclose the cause of their death, however, said they died in active service. The CJ decried the frequent adjournment of cases by lawyers, a practice, she added, hindered the
dispensation of justice. Abiri also appealed to Governor Seriake Dickson to release the funds approved for the state Customary
Courts to enable them to execute their major projects.