Appeal Court Delivers 3,001 Judgements In 2017

The President of the Court of Appeal, Justice Zainab Bulkachuwa yesterday disclosed that the court within the year delivered 3,001 judgments and at the same time heard about 6, 963 appeals.
Justice Bulkachuwa stated this during the opening of the 2017 Court of Appeal Judges Conference at the headquarters of the Court in Abuja.
On the latest appointment of 14 justices to the court, she said: “I would like to seize this opportunity to straighten the fact on the ongoing process of elevation of judges to the Court of Appeal. It is strictly based on merit with particular preference for judges who have distinguished themselves by the quality of their Judgements in the lower Courts and to fill in vacancies created by the death, retirement or elevation to the Supreme Court of our former justices”.
The PCA further noted that ýannual Conference which takes place in December every year is a tradition set aside to bring together, the Justices of the Court of Appeal, to brainstorm on the successes so far recorded with a view to highlighting and proffering solutions to the issues raised.
“Sometimes back, the Judiciary came under heavy attacks on allegation of corrupt practices. As judicial officers, it is not enough to simply talk about corrupt practices but one must believe in the fight against corruption and we must work at it together. I therefore, urge us all to eschew corruption and uphold best practices that will rekindle and bring back trust to the judicial arm of government. Let’s not ask how corruption can be tackled; our main focus should be on what we can do as individuals, or collectively as a body to address this plague.
“I would like to inform this auspicious gathering that during the 2016 /2017 Legal year, a pragmatic framework was set as an indicator to clear backlog of appeals in the sixteen Judicial Divisions of the Court of Appeal. It is against this backdrop that a special taskforce was set up to clear this backlog. The rationale behind this initiative is for Justices from less busy Divisions to move to and sit over pending appeals in busier Divisions. This does not mean that they were not sitting in their primary Divisions.
“This extraordinary feat by my brother Justices in all the 16 Divisions of the Court has recorded three thousand and one (3001) Judgments as well as six thousand nine hundred and sixty three Motions (6963).
“This is a praiseworthy achievement and I would like to commend your Lordships’ commitment, hard work, resilience and diligence. I am proud of all of you.
“At this juncture My Lords, I make bold to inform you today, that we are working round the clock to introduce more measures that will not only promote accountability and transparency but will also enhance efficiency in Court administration, general administration of the Court of Appeal expended mainly on the realization of the primary objectives of the Institution”.