The President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Afam Osigwe, has criticised state governors who publicly donate cars, houses, or other items to judges, calling the practice demeaning and a threat to judicial independence.
Speaking on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily, Osigwe said such public gestures by governors make it appear as though they are doing judges a favour, undermining both the dignity and autonomy of the judiciary.
It’s concerning to see governors publicly boasting, ‘I gave cars to my judges,’ Osigwe said. That’s not how to treat an independent arm of government.
He warned that the judiciary cannot be perceived as independent if it relies on the executive for essential needs like vehicles, infrastructure, or operational funding.
Even if the judiciary is independent in practice, the perception will always be that it’s under the control of the executive — especially if judges depend on handouts, he added.
Osigwe insisted that all judicial resources should be provided through a transparent budgeting process, controlled and executed by the judiciary itself — not handed out by the executive.
No branch of government should be reduced to receiving handouts. Judicial independence must be both real and seen to be real, he concluded.
