Ayade Directs Immediate Employment of 30 Lawyers
Bassey Inyang in Calabar
The Cross River State Governor, Professor Ben Ayade, has directed that 30 lawyers should be employed immediately into the state judiciary to boost the manpower needs of the state Ministry of Justice.
Ayade gave the directive at a ceremony where he inauguration the e-library for the state ministry of justice at its headquarters in Calabar.
According to Ayade, the employment of additional law officers would enhance the work of the ministry and ensure prompt delivery of service to the people.
Ayade said despite the workload the ministry’s law officers and its staff were saddled with, he was impressed with their high level of response to litigations involving the state within and outside.
“For the Chief Justice of the Federation to confess that he was impressed to see the number one lawyer of the state going to court himself is quite exemplary and I really commend the Attorney General for the leadership he has shown since his assumption of office,” Ayade said.
Ayade tasked staff of the ministry of justice to make judicious use of the e-library, which he said has been equipped with modern facilities and gadgets to keep them abreast with current trends in the legal profession for maximal benefit of the state.
In his remarks, the state Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Mr. Joseph Abang, commended the governor for providing e-library for the ministry.
Abang said the e-library would assist the law officers in the effective discharge of their duties.
However, the commissioner appealed to the governor to also establish e-libraries in the ministries zonal offices located in Akamkpa, Ikom and Ogoja Local Government Areas.
The commissioner also appealed to Ayade to attend to some other needs of the ministry.
Giving details of the plot, Akinmade said a meeting held recently outside the state where a group tagged: ‘Project Team’ was formed out of which a committee was also carved out with a mandate to ensure everything is done to stir the peace being enjoyed in Ondo PDP and destabilise it.
According to the commissioner, “at the meeting, the committee was given two weeks ultimatum to come up with a workable plan that will guarantee the destabilisation of the party in the state ahead of the November election.
He said the committee came up with the idea of creating a faction in the party using the judiciary following which a member was mandated to shop for a lawyer who will be able to get a judge to do the job adding that the team has secured a judge with whom a meeting was held on Monday.
Insisting that the adversary’s plot will fail “like the similar one carried out before the last state assembly election failed” Akinmade called on the Chief Justice of Nigeria to caution judges in the country and warned them against issuing judgments capable of further endangering the fragile peace in the country.
He said any attempt by agents of destability to cause disaffection and chaos in the state will be met with severe opposition from the people who he reported are politically conscious more than ever before and have been able to identify those serving them among the political class from those who are merely using them, even as he warned that government will deal decisively with any one or group of people that want to turn the state into a theatre of war.
“Ondo will resist any attempt by anybody or group that want to turn the state into a theatre of war. Whoever that hides under the instrumentality of the law to subvert the people’s will should be ready to face the consequences of their action,” the statement also read.
