Vice President Kashim Shettima has commended the judiciary for standing firm against vested interests, saying that by affirming President Bola Tinubu’s mandate, it upheld the nation’s faith and safeguarded its democratic future.
Shettima stated this on Wednesday in Abuja at the Body of Benchers Maiden Annual Lecture and the public presentation of the report on the Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee’s directions.
He urged the judiciary to remain resolute in delivering justice and resisting external pressures that could threaten its independence.
“The pursuit of justice does not happen in a vacuum; it is shaped by the gatekeepers and personnel of the law. That is why the Body of Benchers remains a crucial pillar of our nation’s sovereignty. A nation is only as accountable, fair, and orderly as the people who make, enforce, and interpret its laws,” he said.
Shettima cautioned against the misconception that justice belongs to the loudest voices, emphasizing that true justice serves both the powerful and the voiceless.
“One of the gravest mistakes we make is believing that justice is the wish of the loudest party. In reality, justice is just as essential to the most voiceless individual. It is the clearest affirmation that a nation is not governed by a mob.
“That is why we recognise that the mandate entrusted to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu was affirmed by a judiciary that did not succumb to vested interests—one that understood that the fate of a nation is too sacred to be intimidated or compromised,” he said.
Shettima stressed that the foundation of any great nation rests on the moral strength of its institutions, adding that those who uphold justice must resist divisive sentiments and remain steadfast in their duties.
“Laws are not mere technicalities; they are the scaffolding of civilisation. Without laws, there is no order. Without order, there is no society. Every time justice is delayed or bent to serve the interests of agents of anarchy, we erode the very foundation of our nation. And if that foundation crumbles, no matter how high we have built, everything falls apart,” he said.
He described the legal profession as carrying a unique burden, stating that judicial officers are not just interpreters of the law but custodians of justice.
“You, my lords, bear a responsibility unlike any other. The expectations are high, and the temptations are many. Yet, I urge you to remain steadfast. To borrow the words of the eminent jurist Lord Atkin, ‘Justice is not a cloistered virtue; it must be allowed to suffer the scrutiny of reasonable men,’” Shettima said.
The vice president further stated that President Tinubu has demonstrated that the most effective way for the country’s tripartite system of government to function is for its arms to treat one another as allies in nation-building, rather than as adversaries.
