The governor of Cross River State in southern Nigeria, Senator Bassey Otu has identified capacity building of judicial officers as a panacea for an effective judiciary.
Governor Otu made the remark when he received the executives of the Cross River chapter of Magistrates Association of Nigeria (MAN) at his office in Calabar, the state capital.
Otu, who committed to better welfare, training and retraining of judicial officers, emphasized the importance of speedy and effective dispensation of justice to build confidence of citizens in the third arm of government.
According to Governor Otu, the function of the magistrates “is very sensitive in the judiciary. Without you, government would not hold. I know the peculiarities of some of the issues bothering magistrates in the state. Those issues would not be addressed in one day; but with continuous interaction, things would be sorted out.”
While urging the magistrates to exercise patience and continue to be selfless in the discharge of their duties, he assured of his administration’s determination to resolve all outstanding matters of welfare, infrastructural intervention, and promotion.
Implement changes
Earlier, the Chairman of the association, Mr. Godwin Onah expressed confidence in the governor’s ability to implement the changes outlined to surmounted teething challenges for a vibrant judiciary in Cross River State.
Onah expressed the hope that challenges such as “welfare, infrastructure, capacity building for judicial officers, due process in promotions, upward review of emoluments and others would give priority attention.”
He congratulated the governor on his victory at the polls and the recent Appeal Court verdict re-affirming his election, noting that the people-oriented policies were already impacting positively on the people.
