Justice System - NEWS AGENCY OF NIGERIA

Philip Daniel Yatai
May, Tue, 2025

Stakeholders urge digitisation of justice system

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By Jacinta Nwachukwu

Some stakeholders in Nigeria’s judiciary have emphasised the urgent need to digitise the legal and judicial sector to address long-standing inefficiencies hampering effective justice delivery.

Speaking at the 2025 Justice Innovation and Technology (JIT) Summit on Tuesday in Abuja, Mrs Lucy Abagi, CEO of the Public and Private Development Centre (PPDC), highlighted the persistent reliance on manual court processes.

She noted that the summit aimed to promote automation for timely and efficient justice.

Abagi said PPDC, with international backing, piloted the Justice Initiative in Nasarawa, Kaduna, and Plateau states, using speech-to-text devices to enhance case management.

She added that more than 80 per cent of Nigerian courts still operated manually, and the initiative was designed to eliminate this.

“The Judic AI software, developed by young Nigerian tech graduates, has already been deployed in 16 courtrooms.

“Judges no longer need to write long-hand; instead, they get instant transcriptions, which also lightens the administrative burden,” she said.

She added that the technology could help reduce Nigeria’s backlog of awaiting trial inmates, currently estimated at around 80,000.

Bemshima Peter, CEO of Devon Technologies Ltd., also spoke at the summit, stressing the need for technological adoption in a sector that had trailed behind others.

He described Judic AI as a smart transcription and case management solution, already operational in 16 courts.

In spite of challenges like diverse accents and dialects affecting speech recognition, Peter said the company was working on multilingual capabilities for seamless communication.

National President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Mr Afam Osigwe, urged judges to become computer literate and advocated for the integration of virtual hearings to reduce delays and unnecessary physical appearances in court.

“Courts should offer virtual hearing facilities to all parties, not just expect litigants to make personal arrangements,” Osigwe said, calling the refusal of some courts to adopt such systems “unacceptable.”

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Devon Technologies, a legal tech firm, is working to reshape Africa’s justice systems through digital transformation and accessibility. (NAN)

Edited by Abiemwense Moru

DHQ moves to harmonise court martial procedures

Philip Daniel Yatai
Dec, Tue, 2024

Defence/Security

DHQ moves to harmonise court martial procedures

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By Sumaila Ogbaje

The Defence Headquarters (DHQ) is to harmonise court martial procedures across the services in line with the nation’s justice system.

The Chief Defence Staff (CDS). Gen. Christopher Musa, said this on Monday, at the opening of a conference on Rules of Procedure, substance abuse and sexual orientation in the Armed Forces of Nigeria in Abuja.

Musa, represented by the Chief of Defence Administration Rear Adm. Monday Unurhere, said that Nigeria’s contemporary operating environment was confronted with multiple administrative challenges with telling consequences for military effectiveness.

According to him, given that discipline is the bedrock of the military, the DHQ responses to these challenges especially in relation to how we regulate the conduct of personnel requires added impetus.

“Accordingly, the DHQ jumped at this opportunity to develop a comprehensive approach to harmonizing the Rules of Procedure for court martial, addressing issues of substance abuse and homosexuality within the Services.

“Notably, differences in extant Rules of Procedure for administration of justice in the Armed Forces across the Services create inconsistencies in the administration of military justice.

“These inconsistencies are further deepened by fragmentation and obsolescence of aspects of the Rules.

“Consequently, it has become expedient to review the extant Rule of Procedure with a view to eliminating conflicts by harmonising the application of justice and enforcement of discipline in the Armed Forces of Nigeria,” he said.

Musa said the military was not spared from growing global debates on substance abuse and homosexuality, adding that the twin issues had massive negative effects on morale and operational effectiveness.

He expressed confidence that the conference would foster engaging dialogues, vibrant exchange of ideas towards generating bespoke and enduring solutions that would strengthen justice and discipline within the military.

The Director of Legal Services (Army), Lt.-Col. SO Okebukola in his presentation, said the Nigerian army relied on imported Royal British Army rules to court martial personnel.

Okebukola, represented by the Chief of Staff, Legal Services, Lt.-Col. Chukwudi Okonkwo, said that some obsolete materials imported were not applicable to the Nigerian criminal justice system.

He recommended that all references to obsolete foreign materials not suitable to the Nigerian criminal justice system should be expunged and replaced with pertinent policies relevant to the Nigerian military criminal justice system.

“Plea bargaining procedure should be incorporated into the Rules of Procedure,” he said. (NAN)

Edited by Sadiya Hamza