JUSUN’s Strike: Impediments Or Impeccable?

By Hameed Ajibola Jimoh Esq.

The indefinite strike action declared by the Judiciary Staff
Union of Nigeria- herein after referred to as JUSUN- has lasted for
over eight weeks and it is still counting! The JUSUN had embarked
on the strike action to compel financial autonomy of the judiciary
on the Governors of States that have not complied with the said
autonomy. There are therefore those persons who have supported the
strike action and to them, the strike action is impeccable as it is
the right action regardless of the consequences (as to them it is a
‘fight to finish’ once and for all
battle) while there are others who criticize the
strike action for its negative consequences and or impacts on the
administration of justice, litigants and lawyers and to these
persons, the strike action constitutes impediments to justice and
progress of the nation. This paper is of the firm view that the
strike action constitutes impediments to the progress of the nation
and administration of justice and greatly affects the litigants and
lawyers and this paper therefore objects and or opposes the view of
those persons who view the strike action as impeccable as their
view is (with due respect to them) nothing but selfish, lazy and
ill-motived as well as anti-justice, while the common man continues
to suffer!

First and foremost, I must state that it remains the truth that
there is no justification for JUSUN’s continuous lock down of
Federal Courts, Courts of FCT-Abuja and Courts of States that have
complied with the autonomy for the judiciary! JUSUN must respect
the democratic principles of Federalism and reverse and or suspend
its strike action with immediate effect against the Federal Courts,
Courts of FCT-Abuja and Courts of States that have complied with
the autonomy for the judiciary! I must be assertive also that I am
not appealing to JUSUN to suspend its strike action, rather, it is
a matter of law which requires no appeal for JUSUN to halt its
strike action against Federal Courts, Courts of FCT-Abuja and
Courts of States that have complied with the autonomy for the
judiciary! I have also viewed some self-centered views among
lawyers and non-lawyers supporting the JUSUN’s strike action while
the administration of justice, litigants and lawyers as well as
common man continue to be made sacrificial lambs! Everyone must
observe the presence of God Almighty in all that he does as one day
very soon, God Almighty shall judge man’s deeds! Doing that which
is right is the favour of the doer as well as doing that which is
bad is the discredit of the doer and no man shall bear the
punishment of other persons (according to my religious belief as a
Muslim). We (as well as JUSUN) must check our intention! Are we
acting on sentiments or tribalism or ethnicity or other
ulterior-motives?! We must act for justice to prevail at all
times!

It is very pathetic that some senior lawyers including the
Nigerian Bar Association-herein after referred to as the NBA (with
due respect to them) have not come down to feel the plights of
lawyers in litigation and litigants who have continued to suffer
innocently for the JUSUN’s unlawful and or misapplication of the
strike action against those Federal Courts, Courts of FCT-Abuja and
Courts of States that have complied with the financial autonomy for
the judiciary! JUSUN has remained adamant and unyielding to the
yearnings that it should suspend the strike action against Federal
Courts, Courts of FCT-Abuja and Courts of States that have complied
with the autonomy for the judiciary and in fact, generally! The
government as well as the general public must also rise up to
restrain JUSUN from its continued illegality and unlawfulness as
well as its un-constitutionalism against Federal Courts, Courts of
FCT-Abuja and Courts of States that have complied with the autonomy
for the judiciary! JUSUN must understand that it is illegal,
unlawful and unconstitutional for it to continue to fight for the
compliance with a certain provision of the Constitution of Nigeria
while at the same time, it commits unconstitutional acts in the
pursuit of its desired goal, thereby denying other persons the
enjoyment of their own constitutional rights, such act itself (in
my humble view) is worse than its agitation for the financial
autonomy of the judiciary because it aims at destroying the tenets
and principles of Federalism enshrined and or propounded by
democracy, if JUSUN must reason! The NBA has not been seen at the
national level to have any pity, sympathy and interests of its own
members at heart as it is proven by its absolute support for JUSUN
(while its own members continue to suffer economically and
socially) as an association of lawyers for the interests of others!
It is indeed a great shame and very disappointingly despicable! The
NBA would encourage its own members with whose moneys it survives
and carry out its programmes (as a professional pressure group) to
continue to ‘suffer and smile’ with fake
hope and promises that the strike action would be called off
‘soon’! Very laughable indeed! Is it
not?! Also, I have observed that some wealthy ones among lawyers
refused to take care and or alleviate the impacts of the strike
action on the vulnerable lawyers (regardless of the years of the
vulnerable lawyers at the bar)! Yet, the wealthy ones inhumanly
criticized the vulnerable lawyers against their criticism of the
strike action on their just crawlingly surviving business despite
having regard to the recent impacts of the covid-19 and the
#endsars protest that left destructive effect on the economy of
government and citizens as a whole! Some lawyers have also been
made to have devised criminal and unprofessional ways of survival
at this time! God forbid that things even get worse than they were
before this acclaimed strike action by JUSUN! One thing that I am
sure of is that God Almighty would not support the evil doers to
achieve their aims! If JUSUN was sincere with its agitation upon
which it has embarked on the strike action, all would be well but
if JUSUN was not with sincerity, the ill-intention shall soon be
exposed, that I know! More so, God Almighty that I know is a God of
justice!

Finally, I therefore urge and call on the general public to
prevail upon JUSUN to immediately suspend the strike action now and
not later! Injustice to one is said to be an injustice to all! When
a group of persons become just like a ‘stray-dog’ or a
‘stray-bullet’ going astray, it is very important to
assist such persons by curbing it and or restraining it from any
further going astray! Furthermore, if the NBA national leadership
knows what its leadership roles even under its own constitution
are, it would protect the interests of its own members (first
before others and in this case, JUSUN)! Therefore, it is my final
resolution that this ongoing JUSUN’s strike has constituted
impediments rather than impeccability hence, it should immediately
be called off!

Justice for all!

Email: hameed_ajibola@yahoo.com^[1]

By Hameed Ajibola Jimoh Esq.

The indefinite strike action declared by the Judiciary Staff
Union of Nigeria- herein after referred to as JUSUN- has lasted for
over eight weeks and it is still counting! The JUSUN had embarked
on the strike action to compel financial autonomy of the judiciary
on the Governors of States that have not complied with the said
autonomy. There are therefore those persons who have supported the
strike action and to them, the strike action is impeccable as it is
the right action regardless of the consequences (as to them it is a
‘fight to finish’ once and for all
battle) while there are others who criticize the
strike action for its negative consequences and or impacts on the
administration of justice, litigants and lawyers and to these
persons, the strike action constitutes impediments to justice and
progress of the nation. This paper is of the firm view that the
strike action constitutes impediments to the progress of the nation
and administration of justice and greatly affects the litigants and
lawyers and this paper therefore objects and or opposes the view of
those persons who view the strike action as impeccable as their
view is (with due respect to them) nothing but selfish, lazy and
ill-motived as well as anti-justice, while the common man continues
to suffer!

First and foremost, I must state that it remains the truth that
there is no justification for JUSUN’s continuous lock down of
Federal Courts, Courts of FCT-Abuja and Courts of States that have
complied with the autonomy for the judiciary! JUSUN must respect
the democratic principles of Federalism and reverse and or suspend
its strike action with immediate effect against the Federal Courts,
Courts of FCT-Abuja and Courts of States that have complied with
the autonomy for the judiciary! I must be assertive also that I am
not appealing to JUSUN to suspend its strike action, rather, it is
a matter of law which requires no appeal for JUSUN to halt its
strike action against Federal Courts, Courts of FCT-Abuja and
Courts of States that have complied with the autonomy for the
judiciary! I have also viewed some self-centered views among
lawyers and non-lawyers supporting the JUSUN’s strike action while
the administration of justice, litigants and lawyers as well as
common man continue to be made sacrificial lambs! Everyone must
observe the presence of God Almighty in all that he does as one day
very soon, God Almighty shall judge man’s deeds! Doing that which
is right is the favour of the doer as well as doing that which is
bad is the discredit of the doer and no man shall bear the
punishment of other persons (according to my religious belief as a
Muslim). We (as well as JUSUN) must check our intention! Are we
acting on sentiments or tribalism or ethnicity or other
ulterior-motives?! We must act for justice to prevail at all
times!

It is very pathetic that some senior lawyers including the
Nigerian Bar Association-herein after referred to as the NBA (with
due respect to them) have not come down to feel the plights of
lawyers in litigation and litigants who have continued to suffer
innocently for the JUSUN’s unlawful and or misapplication of the
strike action against those Federal Courts, Courts of FCT-Abuja and
Courts of States that have complied with the financial autonomy for
the judiciary! JUSUN has remained adamant and unyielding to the
yearnings that it should suspend the strike action against Federal
Courts, Courts of FCT-Abuja and Courts of States that have complied
with the autonomy for the judiciary and in fact, generally! The
government as well as the general public must also rise up to
restrain JUSUN from its continued illegality and unlawfulness as
well as its un-constitutionalism against Federal Courts, Courts of
FCT-Abuja and Courts of States that have complied with the autonomy
for the judiciary! JUSUN must understand that it is illegal,
unlawful and unconstitutional for it to continue to fight for the
compliance with a certain provision of the Constitution of Nigeria
while at the same time, it commits unconstitutional acts in the
pursuit of its desired goal, thereby denying other persons the
enjoyment of their own constitutional rights, such act itself (in
my humble view) is worse than its agitation for the financial
autonomy of the judiciary because it aims at destroying the tenets
and principles of Federalism enshrined and or propounded by
democracy, if JUSUN must reason! The NBA has not been seen at the
national level to have any pity, sympathy and interests of its own
members at heart as it is proven by its absolute support for JUSUN
(while its own members continue to suffer economically and
socially) as an association of lawyers for the interests of others!
It is indeed a great shame and very disappointingly despicable! The
NBA would encourage its own members with whose moneys it survives
and carry out its programmes (as a professional pressure group) to
continue to ‘suffer and smile’ with fake
hope and promises that the strike action would be called off
‘soon’! Very laughable indeed! Is it
not?! Also, I have observed that some wealthy ones among lawyers
refused to take care and or alleviate the impacts of the strike
action on the vulnerable lawyers (regardless of the years of the
vulnerable lawyers at the bar)! Yet, the wealthy ones inhumanly
criticized the vulnerable lawyers against their criticism of the
strike action on their just crawlingly surviving business despite
having regard to the recent impacts of the covid-19 and the
#endsars protest that left destructive effect on the economy of
government and citizens as a whole! Some lawyers have also been
made to have devised criminal and unprofessional ways of survival
at this time! God forbid that things even get worse than they were
before this acclaimed strike action by JUSUN! One thing that I am
sure of is that God Almighty would not support the evil doers to
achieve their aims! If JUSUN was sincere with its agitation upon
which it has embarked on the strike action, all would be well but
if JUSUN was not with sincerity, the ill-intention shall soon be
exposed, that I know! More so, God Almighty that I know is a God of
justice!

Finally, I therefore urge and call on the general public to
prevail upon JUSUN to immediately suspend the strike action now and
not later! Injustice to one is said to be an injustice to all! When
a group of persons become just like a ‘stray-dog’ or a
‘stray-bullet’ going astray, it is very important to
assist such persons by curbing it and or restraining it from any
further going astray! Furthermore, if the NBA national leadership
knows what its leadership roles even under its own constitution
are, it would protect the interests of its own members (first
before others and in this case, JUSUN)! Therefore, it is my final
resolution that this ongoing JUSUN’s strike has constituted
impediments rather than impeccability hence, it should immediately
be called off!

Justice for all!

Email: hameed_ajibola@yahoo.com^[1]