Court orders FG to pay N10m monthly salary to CJN
The National Industrial Court (NIC), on Friday in Abuja, ordered the federal government to review and increase the monthly salary of the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CNJ) to N10 million.
Similarly, the court also ordered the government to review and increase the monthly salaries of other judicial officers in the country.
Delivering judgment, Justice Osatohanmwen Obaseki-Osagie held that the salaries of judges and justices had been stagnated for over 14 years.
According to the Judge, this was in spite of the increased workload on judicial officers, who she said, wallowed in penury owing to their “extremely low salaries and allowances.”
The judgment follows a suit filed by Mr. Sebastine Hon, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN),
He had described the situation as “very embarrassing”, and urged the court to review and increase their salaries.
Agreeing with the submission of Hon, the court, therefore, ordered the increase of the CJN’s salary to N10 million, and that of the Court of Appeal President and Supreme Court Justices to N9 million.
It also increased the salaries of the Court of Appeal Justices, State Chief Judges, President of the Industrial Court, Grand Khadis and President of Customary Courts to N8m.
The court also ordered the federal government to forthwith, pay N7m monthly salaries to other judges.
“There is no doubt that from evidence adduced before this court that salaries payable to judges as well as their conditions of service, have been greatly altered to their disadvantage. Judicial officers are daily impoverished by the devaluation of the naira.
“They have suffered financial hardship and embarrassment owing to their poor pay. It is a shame to the country. In spite of this, our judges have continued to carry out their statutory duties.
“Justices are themselves victims of a great injustice. What an irony”, Justice Obaseki-Osagie said.
The Judge also ordered that the judgment should be served on the Revenue Mobilization, Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC), and the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Abubakar Malami, SAN.
According to the judge, judges in the country have the right to have their salaries reviewed upwards periodically.
Justice Obaseki-Osagie added that the NIC, being the court that determines labour and employment related matters, has the constitutional power to compel the federal government through its agencies, to upwardly review the remuneration of judicial officers.
Obaseki-Osagie also awarded N1.5m cost against the RMAFC, the National Assembly and the Minister of Justice, who were all joined as defendants in the suit.
