AGF, Fagbemi Tasks Justice Parastatals On Optimal Performance, Ministerial Deliverables

In furtherance of the commitment of the federal government to performance measurement and reporting, the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, Prince Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), charged agencies and parastatals under his ministry on Thursday to work hard towards ensuring the Justice Sector Plan and optimum performance in carrying out the mandates of their agencies and parastatals.

Fagbemi took charge in Abuja at a ministerial retreat organised for the ministry, agencies, and parastatals under its supervision for the purpose of advancing the administration of justice and attaining ministerial deliverables and presidential priorities under the Renewed Hope Agenda of the present administration.

The Sector Plan, he said, covers measures to achieve speedy dispensation of justice, robust engagement with the Judiciary, National Assembly, and other Justice Sector Institutions, successful prosecution of terrorism and high-profile corruption cases, engagement with relevant MDAs, and other stakeholders on enhanced salaries and allowances for federal judicial officers.

The sector plan also covers the coordination and collaboration between relevant organisations under the Proceeds of Crime Act (POCA), the implementation of the national anti-corruption strategy, the development and deployment of a national crime database, the review of outdated laws and regulations, access to justice on human rights protection, compliance with laws and policies on public procurement to mitigate contract failure, and reducing federal government judgement debts, amongst others.

He disclosed that the Ministry of Justice has encapsulated the ministerial deliverables as key priorities of the goals in its Strategic Plan 2023–2027 to enhance the implementation of the assigned Sector Plan.

Fagbemi said the Justice sector is pivotal to the attainment of the objectives of other sectors, as well as attaining the universal role of the law as a veritable enabler for development in the country

“Particularly, the justice sector is a key catalyst or stimulator for economic growth, investment drive, and revenue generation, among others,” Fagbemi stated, adding that the sector renders non-kinetic support to the security and defence architecture of the country.

He stressed the urgent need to reposition the justice sector for optimal performance and enhanced productivity, in line with the renewed hope agenda of the present administration.

The Minister said, “The one-day retreat offers a valuable break from our routine official engagements, providing a platform to relate as a sector with a view to apprising our respective roles as well as to brainstorm on strategies needed to achieve our mandates.”.

Fagbemi said the ministry signed a performance contract with the president, promising to ensure the performance of the ministerial deliverables assigned to the Ministry of Justice.

According to the Minister, “The Sector Plan contains 15 ministerial deliverables, 49 key performance indicators (KPIs), baselines, and targets. You may wish to note that this performance bond comes with initiatives, deliverables, key performance indicators, timelines, and targets that this sector must unconditionally achieve.

“One of the key performance indicators of this meeting is to cascade the signed bond to the Ministry’s management and Chief Executive Officers of the Agencies. Therefore, it is imperative that we all come together to critically understand this performance bond and the variables and be well apprised of what is expected of us as a ministry or agency.”.

He said that government priorities and reform initiatives are geared towards ensuring good governance, effective service delivery, and the optimal performance of sectoral plans in accordance with laid-down processes and in synergy with the National Development Plan 2021–2025.

The Minister added that the Result Delivery Unit in the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation was established to track the performance of the signed bond, adding that the retreat shall examine two pillars of the Reform Initiatives of Government under the Federal Civil Service Strategy and Implementation Plan (FCSSIP25), namely, the Performance Management System and Digitization.

“These two pillars form the bedrock for the successful performance of the Justice Sector Plan and must therefore be given priority in all our operations,” he said.

Earlier in her welcome address, the Solicitor General of the Federation (SGF) and Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Justice, Mrs Beatrice Jeddy-Agba, said the retreat was designed to provide a veritable platform to benchmark the collective commitment to deliver on the development aspirations, as captured in the ministerial deliverables and priority areas for the Justice Sector.

Jeddy-Agba recalled that the first action taken by the present administration was to set out its priorities in line with the renewed hope agenda, followed by a presidential retreat for ministers, permanent secretaries, and top government functionaries.

At the end of the retreat, she disclosed that the President signed a performance bond with ministers and permanent secretaries, which is expected to serve as a scorecard for respective ministries.

“This performance bond is also to be cascaded to agencies under the supervision of the ministries to enable an objective mechanism to benchmark their performance.

“The overall objective is to promote a culture of accountability and transparency in the public service, render progress reports on the implementation of ministerial mandates along the priority areas of the administration, review performance, and identify key impediments to the implementation of our various mandates,” she said.

The Perm-Sec said the retreat is part of efforts on the part of the Ministry to work with the agencies under its supervision to deliver on the performance contract for the justice sector, using it as a reference point to appraise successes and challenges and to identify areas for improvement.

She assured that the Minister and her office will continue to provide necessary support and guidance to support various initiatives to enhance the abilities of agencies and parastatals under the ministry to deliver on their various mandates and urged them to remain committed and focused towards actualizing the goals and objectives of the retreat, which will set the tone for changing the narratives of Nigeria’s justice sector for higher efficiency to meet the yearnings and expectations of Nigerians as well as the international community.