Bill for virtual court hearings fails at Senate

The Senate on Tuesday failed to pass a bill seeking approval for virtual court hearings in the country.

This was the aftermath of the electronic voting system employed by the Upper Chamber during the plenary presided by President Ahmad Lawan.

In the voting for “A Bill for an Act to Alter the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 to allow Court or Tribunal Proceedings to be Conducted remotely, Virtually, Online or through any Media Platform or Technological Innovation; and for Related Matters”, the YES had 62 votes; NO had 24 votes while three senators abstained from voting.

As a result, the Bill failed to pass.

The advent of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 affected every facet of life and the economy including the judiciary.

Read also: FOR THE RECORD: How Senate voted on 68 Bills for Constitution Amendment

In a bid to curb the spread of the virus in the Nigerian judiciary, the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Hon. Justice I.T Muhammad, on March 23, 2020, directed all courts in Nigeria to suspend sittings for an initial period of two weeks at the first instance, except in matters that are urgent, essential or time-bound.

In his capacity as the Chairman of the National Judicial Council (NJC), the CJN, Tanko Mohammed in 2020, set up a 10-man committee headed by Justice Olabode Rhodes-Vivour. The committee was to come up with urgent practical strategic measures to ensure courts continue to function despite the lockdown.

After much deliberations, the committee among other recommendations in line with federal government’s guidelines for taming the spread of COVID-19, recommended the use of technology by way of virtual sitting in court proceedings.
Both the CJN and NJC approved of it.

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