Dele Farotimi, a human rights attorney and activist, claims that the Nigerian judiciary performed better during military administration than it does presently.
In a statement posted on social media on Sunday, Farotimi made this claim, pointing out that the judiciary no longer possesses the integrity that it did under military rule.
The activist drew comparisons between the current judiciary and the era of military dictatorship, when it was common for successive military regimes to disobey court rulings and utilise expulsion provisions to prevent judicial review of specific activities.
Despite these difficulties, the judiciary of the time was “worthy of the name,” according to Farotimi, implying that judges maintained an institutional standing that the current system, in his opinion, lacks.
“The rulers routinely disregarded court orders and ruled with ouster clauses during the height of the military bandits that ruled Nigeria, when our judiciary was worthy of the name,” Farotimi stated.
He claimed that the existing judiciary is primarily complicit and operates under what he called a corrupt mandate.