Vice President Senator Kashim Shettima has raised alarm over what he describes as a growing trend of blackmail targeting Nigeria’s judiciary.
He cautioned that the third arm of government, as the custodian of justice, must resist any pressure to compromise its integrity for selfish or partisan interests.
Addressing the judiciary’s crucial role in upholding Nigeria’s sovereignty, Shettima reminded legal practitioners that “a nation is only as accountable, fair, and orderly as the people who make, enforce, and interpret its laws.”
He delivered this charge in Abuja on the 27th of March, 2025, while declaring open the maiden edition of the Body of Benchers Annual Lecture and unveiling the report on the Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee’s directions.
The Vice President strongly warned judges and legal professionals against succumbing to external pressures that seek to manipulate justice, emphasizing the dire consequences of such actions.
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“Laws are not mere technicalities; they are the scaffolding of civilisation. Without laws, there is no order. Without order, there is no society. Every time justice is delayed, every time the law is bent to serve the interests of agents of anarchy, and every time institutions waver in the face of blackmail, we erode the very foundation of our nation. And if that foundation crumbles, no matter how high we have built, everything falls apart,” he declared.
Condemning the erroneous notion that justice is dictated by the loudest voices, Shettima reaffirmed his belief in the judiciary’s resilience against political intimidation.
He cited the courts’ unwavering stance in upholding President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s mandate despite mounting pressures and attempts at blackmail.
“In reality, justice is just as essential to the most voiceless individual. It is the clearest affirmation that a nation is not governed by a mob. That is why we recognise that the mandate entrusted to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu was affirmed by a judiciary that did not yield to the weight of vested interests—a judiciary that understood that the fate of a nation is too sacred to be intimidated by any party or bartered for compromise,” he stated.