From Tony John, Port Harcourt

Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, has said his government would not enact a bill for financial autonomy of the judiciary.

He said it would be futile to bother the House of Assembly with such a bill since the 1999 Constitution already recognises independence of the judiciary.

Governor Wike made the assertion at a dinner in honour of delegates to the 61st annual conference of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) at the Banquet Hall, Government House, Port Harcourt.

He said since Nigeria does not practice unitary system of government, it would be wrong for the Federal Government to issue directives to states on how they should run their affairs.

He said: “Nobody can force me on how my state will operate. Nobody can say send this bill to the legislature for judiciary autonomy. The constitution has already guaranteed that the judiciary must be independent and we have agreed on that.

“Amendment had been done that the judiciary must be independent, and on first line charge. If I am not obeying that, there is a sanction for it.”

The governor explained that the state government had released all 2021 capital expenditure due to the judiciary since September, challenging the Federal Government to prove it has done same.

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Governor Wike urged the Federal Government to desist from playing to the gallery with the financial autonomy for the judiciary.

According to him, a Federal Government with decrepit High Court buildings across the country cannot truly claim it fully supports financial autonomy for the judiciary.

“Are they giving the judiciary at the federal level the budget they are supposed to have in order to put the courts in order?” he asked.

Governor Wike warned that the Rivers State government would resist any attempt by the Federal Government to deduct funds meant for the state under the guise of implementing financial autonomy for the judiciary.

The governor said the NBA cannot continue to be docile while security agencies are used by the Federal Government to intimidate and harass judges.

According to him, “when the judiciary is destroyed, the legal profession is gone.”

Governor Wike, also took a swipe at the past leadership of NBA for not protesting against the closure of courts in Rivers State for almost two years by the Governor Chibuike Amaechi-led administration.

He eulogise the Chairman of Council of Legal Education, Nigerian Law School, Emeka Ngige (SAN), for endorsing the establishment of the Port Harcourt campus of the Nigerian Law School.