Bayelsa Judiciary Inaugurates Small Claims Courts Management Committee
The Bayelsa State judiciary, on Thursday, inaugurated a five-member management committee to administer the Small Claims Courts for recovery of debts not exceeding N5million in the state.
The committee is headed by Justice Timipre Songi while Ebiere Empere will serve as secretary with Florizel Obiri, Justina Daniel and Kelvin Amanawa as members.
The state Chief Judge, Justice Kate Abiri explained at the event that the idea of small claims courts was conceived to accord legal inclusiveness to aggrieved persons whose claims are denied space and time in the “congested and expensive dispute resolution platforms.”
She said the current adjudicatory system was expensive, time-consuming and offered little or no succour to litigants with small claims, especially those relating to commercial disputes.
Abiri said, “We can imagine the plight of a small business operator who is owed money for goods supplied. To recover the debts, our businessmen have to go through a litigation system that may take eternity to reach a final decision.
“Oftentimes, the party may have spent much more than what he seeks to recover. Indeed, it is a fact that most businesses have closed down in Nigeria due to our courts delay in enforcing contracts.”
She noted that in spite of being the largest economy in Africa, Nigeria ranks 131 out of 191 economies of the world on ease of doing business.
The Bayelsa chief judge attributed the data to the latest World Bank annual ratings released on November 18, 2022, stressing that enforcement of contracts by courts was one of the criteria used in ranking ease of doing business.
The Presidential Enabling Business Environment Committee is collaborating with the state government and providing technical assistance and support in the establishment of four pilot small claims courts.
Presenting an overview of small claims courts, the deputy chief registrar of the state High Court, Abise Theophilus, said that the courts would be presided over by magistrates.
She stated that the court targets to deliver judgement within 14 days of concluding hearing and ensure that the cases were concluded within 30 days.
According to her, litigants do not have to hire a lawyer to approach the special courts which are less formal and more flexible than regular courts as litigants are allowed to represent themselves.
The chairman of the Yenagoa branch of the Nigerian Bar Association, Ukumbiriowei Saiyou, pledged the support of the bar to efforts by the judiciary in Bayelsa to expedite the dispensation of justice.
Also speaking, the chairman of the Bayelsa State Traditional Rulers Council and monarch of Ekpetiama Kingdom, King Bubaraye Dakolo, Agada IV, commended the establishment of the special courts which, he noted, were expected to enhance the peoples’ access to justice.
He said that the courts would encourage use of legal options to settle disputes as opposed to self-help which sometimes result in loss of lives.
