A bill seeking to increase number of judges of the High Court of Federal Capital Territory (FCT) has passed a second reading at House of Representatives.
Gatekeepers News reports that the proposed legislation intends to amend section 1b of FCT High Court Act, to increase the number of judges from 75 to a minimum of 100.
The bill is sponsored by deputy speaker, Benjamin Kalu and five other members of the house — Kama Nkemkanma, Jonathan Gbefwi, Chinedu Obika, Jafaru Leko, Babajimi Benson, Akin Rotimi, and Joshua Gana.
Leading the debate during plenary on Thursday, Kalu said FCT high court is limited in number of judges to handle the bulk of cases before it.
The deputy speaker said the inadequacy significantly affects the rising volume and complexity of cases brought before the court.
He said, “At the beginning of the 2022/2023 legal year, the FCT high court carried forward 12,513 pending cases from the previous year, underscoring a substantial backlog.”
“Over the same period, the court assigned an additional 5,952 new cases, bringing the workload to a level that greatly strains available judicial resources.”
Kalu emphasised that the current number of judges is insufficient to keep up with caseloads in the court.
He said, “The considerable backlog reflects the limitations faced by the court in addressing the high volume of cases, which is only anticipated to increase with Abuja’s population growth and economic development.”
“Given the rapid expansion of Abuja’s population, coupled with an increasing caseload spanning various legal domains, the need for additional judges has become pressing.”
“This amendment Bill is therefore introduced to address these systemic challenges by increasing the statutory number of judges for the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory.”
Kalu added that increasing the number of judges will reduce the delays in case resolution, ensuring efficient handling of cases, and consequently, enhancing public confidence in the judiciary.
When put to a voice vote by Tajudeen Abbas, speaker of the house, Tajudeen Abbas, the lawmakers voted in support of the bill.
