Twenty-seven years after its establishment, the Abuja Division of the Court of Appeal will move to its permanent site within the next 14 months. This follows the groundbreaking and foundation laying of a five-story structure on Wednesday by the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Olukayode Ariwoola.
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The Abuja Division currently shares space at the Court of Appeal Headquarters within the Three Arms Zone in Abuja. Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Minister Ezenwo Nyesom Wike, who is spearheading the new project, said he has the leave of President Bola Tinubu to attend to the needs of the judiciary.
Speaking at the event, Wike mentioned that President Tinubu did not delay in granting approval for the construction of the project.
He said, “We must thank Mr. President. When the President of the Court of Appeal came last year during their legal year, you know sometimes when you make a request and you see a politician accepts, most of them don’t agree. But knowing the president we have and his commitment, I knew it would come to reality.
“When he came back, I took this matter to Mr. President and I told him that this was the request made by the President of the Court of Appeal, and the CJN who was there emphasized it. I want to tell you wholeheartedly that Mr. President said, ‘Why do you need to wait? After all, it is the FCT that rehabilitated the National Assembly Phase 1. It is FCT that rehabilitated the National Assembly Phase 2, which is an arm of government. So why are you not going to do this for this part of government?’
“I will not be part of any project of this nature that will take two years. I will not be part of that. This is one project that I have seen that is well covered in the budget. This project will cost us N37 billion, but in the budget, Mr. President has provided N30 billion. So the contractor has nothing to worry about. So by September next year, you will use this edifice for your legal year.
“Mr. President is not doing this alone. He has also provided, when he heard where justices are living, people who are trying criminals and terrorists, he said we should have a judiciary who have their own houses.
“What Mr. President has done is that we should provide accommodations: 10 for the Court of Appeal, 10 for the Federal High Court, and 20 for the FCT High Court.
“He has approved that the heads of courts must have their retirement homes. I want to assure you that by August, the foundation of these houses will be laid,” he added.
CJN Ariwoola, on his part, appreciated the minister for his love for the judiciary, saying Nigerians are aware of what he did for the Federal Judiciary when he was Governor of Rivers State.
He said, “What we are having is a great thing. We have gotten the division of the Court in Abuja managing the small space they occupy. Now you have 10 courtrooms and offices in a five-story building.
“On behalf of the judiciary, the honorable minister of the FCT, we thank you very much. We appreciate you for what you are doing. You have just told the whole world that not only the Court of Appeal will benefit from your legacy, but also the heads of various courts and the other courts.
“I understand you had mentioned that not even the apex court will be forgotten. My board of justices of the Supreme Court are not here, but they said I should pass it on to the honorable minister of the FCT that we don’t have another place to go to other than the FCT. So we believe that your administration and the administration of your boss, the head of government, will not forget about the apex court in the legacy being given to the judiciary.
“All the judiciary needs is to be left alone to function, to perform its role unhindered as much as possible. Like the President of the Bar said, once you take care of the judiciary, you have taken care of justice. If you cry for peace anywhere in the world, without justice, there can be no peace,” he added.
Earlier, the President of the Court of Appeal, Justice Dongban Mensem, recalled that the Abuja division of the court was established in 1997. It has grown large and is now a victim of its own success.
She said it is always a logistic and security nightmare having the Abuja division within the premises of the Appeal Court Headquarters.
According to her, when high-profile political and terror cases are being determined at the Appeal Court, the roads leading to the premises are often cordoned off, which affects movement in and around the headquarters.
The project, located in Dakibuyi District Sector Centre B, when completed, will have 10 courtrooms as well as 10 suites for justices, administrative offices for the Registrar and other support staff, ample file rooms for storage of court documents, conveniences, and recess areas for justices during break time.
On his part, the President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Yakubu Maikyau, regretted that past FCT ministers did not pay adequate attention to the judiciary.
He said, “FCT was established in 1976, the same year that the Court of Appeal was established. FCT has had 16 ministers before Wike, but it is only now that we are having a ceremony such as this.”
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