Supreme Court of Nigeria has been shut down.
NewsOne Nigeria reports that activities at the Supreme Court of Nigeria in Abuja, Nigeria’s capital, were grounded on Tuesday morning, April 6, as judiciary workers commenced an indefinite nationwide strike to press for financial autonomy for the judicial arm of government.
This online news platform understands that the development was against the last minute appeal by the Nigerian Bar Association to the workers to shelve the planned strike.
On Tuesday, the gates to the Supreme Court were said to have been locked, leaving workers who intended to resume duties after the Easter holiday stranded.
The strike is expected to be replicated across all Nigerian courts as reported earlier by NewsOne Nigeria.
A circular by the Secretary General of the Judiciary Staff Union of Nigeria, I. M. Adetola, stated that the strike was necessitated by the failure of the federal and state governments to implement a judgement of the Federal High Court, which granted financial autonomy to the judicial arm of government.
It said the union had at its last national executive meeting on March 13, 2021 in Abuja issued a 21-day ultimatum to the government to implement the financial autonomy of the judiciary with a threat to resume the suspended national strike action.
The circular to lawyers reads as thus; “I have been directed to refer to the communique issued at the end of the last National Executive Council (NEC) meeting of JUSUN on 13th March 2021 in Abuja and particularly refer to paragraph 9 on 21 day ultimatum to Government to implement the financial autonomy of the Judiciary, failure of which JUSUN will have no option but to resume the suspended national strike.
“Therefore, as a result of public holiday on 5th April 2021, the strike action has been postponed to Tuesday 6th April 2021.
“You are directed to shut down Courts/Departments in your States until further notice from the National Secretariat of JUSUN in Abuja.”
Meanwhile, NewsOne Nigeria reports that the proposed strike by lawyers in Nigeria, will be coming at a time resident doctors are currently protesting in the country while President Muhammadu Buhari is currently in London receiving medical care.
