Human rights lawyer, Femi Falana, SAN, has threatened to sue the Federal Government over the allocation of newly built luxury houses to judges in Abuja’s Katampe District, describing the policy as discriminatory, illegal and unconstitutional.
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Falana said although judges are entitled to decent accommodation, the government cannot lawfully extend exclusive housing benefits to one class of public officers while other public servants are left without similar welfare support.
Speaking in a video shared by News Central, the senior advocate said he was disturbed after watching the handover of the houses to judges on television.
According to him, the development raises serious questions about equality, public welfare and the legal basis for granting special privileges to top public officers.
“We have got to a stage in the country where we need to challenge the special privileges given to the rich and top public officers in the country,” Falana said.
“Yesterday, I was watching the television and I was very sad when I saw that the Federal Government was handing over the keys of houses to judges. I asked myself under what law we are operating because it is discriminatory and illegal. You must treat us equally in our country.”
Falana clarified that his criticism was not targeted at the welfare of judges, stressing that judicial officers deserve to live comfortably and work securely.
He, however, argued that the same principle should apply to other citizens and public servants who also render important services to the country.
“Judges are entitled to accommodation, by the way. They must live comfortably and work securely, but other citizens must be equally provided for,” he said.
The senior lawyer warned that the housing policy would soon be subjected to judicial scrutiny, insisting that the government must not use public resources to create unequal privileges.
“If you don’t do it, you can be challenged, and that is going to happen very soon, because what is good for the goose is good for the gander,” he added.
Falana cited university lecturers as an example of public servants who also contribute significantly to national development but are poorly remunerated and increasingly left without staff housing.
He said many professors, despite their service to society, no longer have access to adequate official accommodation.
“If you have a professor who also has to render services to society, and those professors are not paid well, nobody talks of providing houses for them now. They were living in rented quarters. These days, there are not enough quarters for them, so we must also look at that,” Falana said.
He also criticised the housing and welfare packages enjoyed by former governors who are now serving in the National Assembly.
According to him, about 21 former governors currently receive salaries and allowances as lawmakers while also enjoying housing benefits in the states they once governed and in Abuja.
Falana contrasted this with the situation of career civil servants who retire after 35 years of service without comparable benefits.
“Governors who are in the National Assembly, about 21 of them, are taking salaries from the National Assembly and jumbo allowances, and they are also entitled to a house in the state where they governed for four or eight years, and another house in Abuja. And you have a civil servant who has worked for 35 years and is just turned out at the end of the day,” he said.
He maintained that equality before the law must guide the allocation of public resources.
“So, we must insist that equality before the law in our country is respected,” Falana stated.
The housing project is part of the Federal Capital Territory Administration’s initiative under the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, to build 40 residential units for judges in Katampe.
President Bola Tinubu has already commissioned some of the completed houses for judges of the Federal High Court and the Court of Appeal.
Wike had said the houses would be allocated on an owner-occupier basis, subject to the approval of the President.
The initiative has, however, continued to draw criticism from some stakeholders, who argue that allocating luxury houses to judges may create public perception concerns and raise questions about possible executive influence over the judiciary.
Falana’s latest intervention adds a constitutional dimension to the controversy, with the senior lawyer insisting that while judicial welfare is important, public resources must be distributed in a manner that respects fairness, equality and the rights of all citizens.
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