Femi Falana SAN, Rejects Attack On Public Interest Litigation By Judges.

In recent time, some High Court Judges have been reported to
have imposed fines ranging from N5 million to N10 million on
concerned citizens whose cases were struck out for want of locus
standi.

With respect, the renewed attack on public interest litigation
by judges cannot be justified under the Constitution and the
African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights (Ratification and
Enforcement) Act. Specifically, the Fundamental Rights (Enforcement
Procedure) Rules 2009 have enjoined judges to encourage public
interest litigation in promoting the human rights of Nigerian
people.

Ex abundanti cautela, the doctrine of locus standi has been
abolished in the area of human rights by Order III of the
Fundamental Rights Enforcement Procedure Rules 2009.

Since access to court has been guaranteed by sections 6 and 36
of the 1999 Constitution and article 7 of the African Charter on
Hunan and Peoples Rights Act it is illegal and unconstitutional to
impose fines on aggrieved citizens who approach the courts to
challenge the illegal official policies or unconstitutuonal
legislations under the current democratic dispensation.

As far as the law stands no judge has the power to order a
litigant to pay costs outside the ambit of the Rules of the
respective High Courts. Even in the award of costs litigants and
their counsel are given fair hearing by judges. Why then are fines
imposed on litigants or lawyers without allowing them to make any
representation?

I wish to state that no judge is empowered by the Constitution,
High Court Law or Rules of Court to impose fines of N5 million or
N10 million on a litigant who has not been tried and convicted for
committing a criminal offence in Nigeria.

We are therefore compelled to draw the attention of our judges
to the case of Fawehinmi v Akilu (1997) NWLR (Pt 65) 979 wherein
the Supreme Court overruled the case of Abraham Adesanya v The
President (1981) ANLR 1.

Since the anachronistic doctrine has been set aside to pave way
for public interest litigation our judges should desist from
striking out or dismissing cases which are filed to challenge
impunity of public officers in Nigeria.

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