Court proceedings in the Federal Capital
Territory (FCT) yesterday went on as usual as the proposed strike action by
the Judicial Staff Association of Nigeria (JUSAN) did not hold.
JUSAN, in a communique dated Nov. 17, and
signed by its national president, Usamatu Amin and 15 other officials,
directed judiciary staff nationwide to commence strike on Dec. 6.
�We the undersigned officers of the association
hereby direct all members of staff of the judiciary nationwide to commence
and sustain an indefinite strike action with effect from Dec. 6, 2004 until
a directive to the contrary is given in writing by our national
secretariat,�� it said.
A correspondent of the News Agency of Nigeria
(NAN) who monitored the development in various courts in Abuja, reports that
court registrars and Clerks were seen conducting proceedings.
At the Wuse Zone Five, High Court, a registrar
who asked for anonymity told NAN that he was not aware of any impending
strike action.
�My brother, I am neither aware of any strike
nor an association call JUSAN in the judiciary,�� he said.
At Wuse Zone Two, it was also business as usual
where another court clerk told NAN that, �nothing can stop the court from
sitting��.
�The courts are not on vacation so we must sit
to hear the cases slated for the day,�� he explained, adding that there was
nothing like a strike in the FCT judiciary.
NAN recalls that the Board of Governors of the
National Judicial Institute (NJI) met on Friday in Abuja and declared that
the proposed strike by JUSAN was illegal.
�Any member of staff who fails to report for
duty will be regarded as having abandoned his or her duty post and
appropriate disciplinary action will be taken accordingly,�� the board
warned.
The Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), the
President of the Court of Appeal, all state Chief Judges, representatives of
the Grand Khadis and Presidents of Customary Courts of Appeal are all
members of the board.
All attempts by NAN to locate the said
officials of JUSAN or their secretariat proved abortive as nobody seems to
know about the association.
Also when NAN called at the NJI, the
administrator, Justice John Ajakaiye, declined to see our correspondent on
the issue.
