CJ Announces Improved Allowances For Judicial Officers

The Chief Judge of the Federal High Court of Nigeria, Justice John Terhembe Tsoho, on Thursday, said that there will be an increment in the welfare allowance for judges and members of staff.

The CJ made the disclosure during the End of the Year, Retirement, and Merit Awards Ceremonies of the court which was held at its headquarters in Abuja.

Recall that the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami SAN, during the legal year ceremony of the Supreme Court on November 28, 2022, said that President Muhammadu Buhari consistently prioritized the judiciary through increased budgetary allocation which has climbed to N150 billion in 2023.

His words: “I like to place on record that since inception, this administration, in line with its commitment to promoting the rule of law, has accorded top priority to the funding of the judiciary. Hence, we have ensured a progressive budgetary allocation to the judiciary which has seen an increase from N73billion in 2015 to over N130 billion in 2022. A further increased sum of N150 billion has been proposed for 2023. In addition to the foregoing, we have provided special intervention when the need arises, particularly, in meeting the huge cost of running election tribunals.”

While not making direct reference to the proposed budget for the judiciary, Justice Tsoho said he was hopeful of the coming year ” because having applied deliberate and combined efforts, we expect next year’s budget to be better than this current year.”

Based on the development, the CJ, being a member of the National Judicial Council, said there will be various improvements to the welfare of Judges and Staff of the Court from 2023.

He said, ” The welfare allowance of Judges will be increased, as well as their air ticket allowance. There will also be an introduction of a special allowance for Officers on Grade Levels 15 and above and arrangements have also been put in place to cushion the effect of inflation for officers on Grade Levels 14 and below.

“I have also instructed that the training of all cadres of staff be commenced from the first quarter of next year, to make up for the previous incapacity of the Court to train all the members of staff, due to our lean budget.”

The CJ also notified everyone present at the event that in a bid to introduce further changes to the court’s operation, there has been a vital overhaul of the members of staff of its Accounting Department.

He added that ” as we all know, the (Accounting) department handles the critical issue of budgeting, which is very pivotal to the success or otherwise of the court.”

Tsoho explained that the reorganization should not be seen as an attack on anybody or meant to favor others but as a needed transformation to reposition the Court.

“I informed us last year that the administrative department of the Court now has a seasoned Administrative officer as head. It is my pleasure to update you that the department has drafted and submitted a functional Organogram to my office, for consideration and for it to be adopted as the official Organogram of the Court.

“The deployment of this management chart is for accountability and to ease the administration and running of the court at all levels. Let me state firmly, that upon the launch of the Organogram, it must be strictly complied with and any defiance will be considered a serious act of misconduct,” the CJ warned.

Corroborating what the CJ said, the Chief Registrar of the FHC, Sulaiman Amida Hassan Esq, said with the expectant improvement in the budget of the court, the welfare of judges and staff will be greatly improved within the scope of resources of the Court.

“It is my pleasure to also inform this gathering that from January 2023. officers on Directorate Cadre shall receive special allowance on a monthly basis while staff on GL. 14 and below will enjoy an improvement in their overtime allowance to enhance their welfare,” Hassan said.

Moreso, the CJ rejoiced with all retirees of the court for their service, thanking members of staff as well.

Furthermore, three members of staff won the Chief Judge’s Merit Award 2022 at the event, namely, Abiodun Jordan Adeyemi (Winner), Ajibade Grace( 1st Runner Up) and Oji Oliver (2nd Runner Up).