Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde on Thursday, said his administration is committed to the welfare of all serving and retired judicial officers and workers in the state.
Speaking at the flag off of the 2021/2022 Legal Year in Ibadan, Makinde commended the judiciary for supporting his administration in the actualisation of the judiciary sector version of the Roadmap for Accelerated Development of Oyo State, 2019-2023, a reform agenda which encapsulates welfare and seeks to place the sector in a position of excellence in the service of the people of Oyo State.
He said: “I am therefore pleased to inform this gathering that this administration has approved and started implementing welfare packages for justices both serving and retired, through the revised pension and gratuities scheme meant to take care of all justices.”
The governor, who was represented by the Secretary to the State Government,(SSG), Mrs Olubamiwo Adeosun, stated that his administration had secured the approval of the National Judicial Council for the appointment of five Judicial Officers, who all passed through a meritorious process of examination and interviews supervised by the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) of Oyo State, noting that four of them are for the High Court, while the remaining one is for the Customary Court of Appeal.
Makinde reiterated: “This process will not only be sustained, I affirm that it has come to stay as this will ensure that every qualified person of Oyo State origin can aspire to the highest position in the Judiciary, while helping to maintain the independence of the Judiciary. We are standardising the selection and recruitment process in this arm of the Judiciary as part of our reforms aimed at taking out the rot in the sector.”
He disclosed that the Oyo State House of Assembly had already approved the appointment of Justice Moshood Abass as the President of the Customary Court of Appeal and that the Judiciary would get unprecedented capital budget inflow in the 2022 Budget, as an additional N6 billion capital project has been included in the Budget.
The Governor stated: “With that, we will be completing the New Court in Ring Road; the Iyaganku Customary Court, other JSC structures and the Olomi Prisons. This administration is not about to drop the ball in its avowed commitment to the welfare of judges and stakeholders in the judiciary sector in general.”
Makinde affirmed that his administration would continue to initiate reform policies in order to bequeath a worthy judiciary to the state and is therefore putting measures in place to accommodate e-filing and enhance online/virtual processes in the Judiciary, while acknowledging the harmonious relationship between the Judiciary and the government in the State.
In his sermon, the Lord Bishop of Ibadan Diocese, the Most Rev’d Dr Joseph Akinfenwa, admonished Nigerians to always put their hope in God at all times despite the prevailing challenges of economic hardship, security tension and experiences of hopelessness across the country.
He equally appealed to the Oyo State Government to reaffirm its stance of nobility and justice by returning missionary schools to their original owners.
