The Nigerian judiciary is set to embrace Information and Communication Technology (ICT) platforms in its drive towards achieving quick dispensation of justice in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The plan for e-Justice was announced on Monday in Abuja by the Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami.
Malami said in a statement that the plan was hinged on the damaging effects of the sudden outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic impact “upon all the ramifications of human life,” noting that “the Nigerian Justice Sector is obviously not immune from the effects of the pandemic.”
The Minister recalled that the necessity to prevent the spread of the deadly virus led to the nationwide closure of court rooms(save for certain exceptions), “hence, the urgent need for paradigm shift to adjust the judicial process to make for recovery of lost grounds occasioned by the lockdown.”
Accordingly, the statement said the Office of the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, with support of relevant stakeholders, will see to:
1. Empowering the institutions of the ACJA, 2015 to commence functioning immediately. For instance, Part 46 dealing with the administration of the Criminal Justice Monitoring Committee; Section 251- witness payment; sections 107 & 108 etc. The net result will galvanize the judicial sector into rapid mode to fast track trials and release of those who are deserving.
2. Deployment of ICT facilities to fast-track taking evidence from witnesses. Digital platforms such as Skype and Zoom can be used. NTA stations across the country can be connected to courts to facilitate taking evidence as witnesses do not have to necessary be physically present in court. It is expected that NTA facilities are to provide the rudimentary structures for video conferencing in view of their digital switchover process. Using their existing IT infrastructure, the courts may only need video screens and bandwidth at the minimum to ensure connectivity between parties to the proceedings.
3. Speedy processing of pending civil matters that have not reached advanced stages of hearing and with the consent of parties and their solicitors to opt for out of court settlement. This may even mean using multi-door mediation avenues in courts that already have one, such in the case of Lagos and the FCT and a few other states.
4. Criminal charges of minor and non-indictable offences should be summarily tried and sentenced to non-custody penalties. Even in cases where sentenced persons cannot pay their fines, the court should consider other alternative punishments other than jail term. This can include parole or probationary sentences and, if possible, community
service like cleaning public places etc.
5. Persons awaiting trial on minor criminal charges should be discharged, especially in cases where adjournments have been at the
instance of the prosecution.
6. The passing of the civil equivalent of the ACJA in order to fast track the disposal of civil proceedings. Civil matters are proportionately more in number and tend to clog the speedy completion of civil trials. The proposed law (civil equivalent of the ACJA) should stipulate time line for commencing and completing civil trials.
Front loading of evidence should also be adopted for civil trials in order to fast track hearings.
7. Setting aside special dates and that Courts work extra hours to decongest their case files. The 2020 court vacation could be suspended as the COVID 19 lockdown period has provided judges with the much-needed break from official duties.
8. Having courts that are fully IT-compliant in order to fast track the digital recording and production of the record of court proceedings. The courts should also be able to automate case filing and cause list management.
9. Appointment of more judges and justices, as appropriate. Additional judicial decisions of federal courts are to be created. This will, as a proactive measure, help in decongesting the already loaded court hearing schedules.
10. Payment of court fees is done electronically. All court fees should be done electronically and not in cash. The courts should only receive receipts of payments and this can be transmitted online as well.
At Courts where hearing electronically may not possible, we can also consider having only few people attend to court matters.
Ensuring that court dockets have only few cases per day can reduce the number of persons in courts. So, all the pending judgments should be drafted and concluded during short period of time. This does not require lawyers to be present.
Once the judgment is ready, the lawyers should be able to receive them in their email or it should be posted on the court’s website for any interested party to download it. This is the way to go and thus provide greater transparency.
The way to go in effect, Court Proceedings should also be handled in a manner that reduces the number of persons in the courts at any given time. Although this requires the movement of suspects from prisons to the courts, all such suspects should be tested, in fact everyone entering the court premises should be tested to ensure that they are not already positive, thus risking the lives of other people.
While some of these changes may not happen in the short term, there is need to start the introduction of these new initiatives immediately through consultations with the Judiciary, NBA, and other relevant stakeholders.
Good steps in the right direction. This was exactly my line of thinking when I reacted to an Article on barristersng.com by Emmanuel Madaki Esq on the dare need of a paradigm shift from the regular court sitting to e-courts. It won’t be an easy task for now but let it start somewhere, we shall definitely get there.