Court complexes remain shut with gates locked statewide as members of the judiciary insist their demands for financial autonomy and improved welfare conditions have been ignored by the state government.
Judicial officers in Ondo State have intensified their industrial action, accusing the state Commissioner for Finance, Mrs. Omowumi Isaac, of undermining Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa’s directives on welfare and financial support for the judiciary.
The escalation comes amid a crippling strike by magistrates, presidents of Grade ‘A’ customary courts and legal research officers that has paralysed judicial activities across the state since January 5.
Court complexes remain shut with gates locked statewide as members of the judiciary insist their demands for financial autonomy and improved welfare conditions have been ignored by the state government.
Criticism has now focused on the Finance Commissioner, whom judicial officers accuse of blocking welfare-related expenditures despite approvals from Governor Aiyedatiwa.
According to a senior judicial source: “Most approvals by the governor are turned down by the commissioner for finance. She refused to release the money approved for the purchase of cars for magistrates since December 2024.”
The source added that even statutory entitlements have been delayed, saying: “Also, judges annual vacation allowance for 2025 was not paid until the very last week of the vacation.”
In a particularly strong rebuke, the officers questioned the leadership dynamics within the state government: “In Ondo State, the governor appears to be at the mercy of the Commissioner for finance. We don't really know who is the boss. Mrs Omowumi Isaac is the Commissioner for finance.”
These comments underscore growing frustration among judicial staff who maintain that the prolonged non-release of funds for welfare and operational needs has worsened already poor conditions in many court facilities.
The strike, which was declared indefinitely by the Coalition of Magistrates, Presidents of Grade ‘A’ Customary Courts and Legal Research Officers, emerged from longstanding grievances over the non-implementation of judicial financial autonomy and deteriorating welfare provisions.
Despite constitutional provisions that guarantee financial autonomy for the judiciary, workers argue that the state government has failed to operationalise these rights, leading to repeated confrontations with the Ministry of Finance over budgetary control and release of funds.
The paralysis of court operations has drawn concern from legal practitioners and civil society, who warn that continued shutdown of judicial services could undermine access to justice and erode public confidence in the rule of law.
SaharaReporters had reported that the Ondo State’s justice system ground to a near-total halt amid accusations that Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa deliberately strangled the judiciary through severe budget cuts, partial financial autonomy and prolonged neglect of judicial welfare.
At the centre of the crisis is a drastic reduction in the judiciary’s proposed budget, from ₦17 billion in 2025 to ₦9.5 billion for 2026, an almost 45 per cent cut that judicial officers say will cripple court operations and worsen already dire working conditions.
Some of the judiciary workers had told SaharaReporters on Saturday that another outrage is the governor’s decision to grant “80 per cent autonomy” limited only to recurrent expenditure, excluding capital projects.
They had warned that the implication of this arrangement is grim: "with the reduced envelope and partial autonomy, staff salaries could be slashed by as much as 20 per cent in 2026, while infrastructure decay remains unaddressed."
“This is not autonomy; it is a slow suffocation of the judiciary,” a senior judicial officer had lamented.
“You cannot strip the courts of capital funding, reduce their budget, and still claim to respect judicial independence.”
Across Ondo State, court buildings are reportedly in a deplorable state. Many courtrooms leak badly during rainfall, forcing judges to suspend sittings as floors become flooded.
Legal practitioners and litigants describe scenes where files are hurriedly packed away as rainwater pours into courtrooms, turning halls of justice into “swimming pools.”
Despite repeated appeals, little has been done to rehabilitate these facilities.
Magistrates and Presidents of Grade ‘A’ Customary Courts are said to commute to work on commercial motorcycles, popularly known as okada, due to the absence of official vehicles.
In some instances, judicial officers reportedly share rides with litigants and even criminal suspects whose cases they are assigned to hear—an arrangement widely viewed as both unsafe and degrading.
High Court judges, meanwhile, are said to be using official vehicles that are more than six years old and increasingly unreliable. Requests for replacement or repair, according to judicial sources, have gone unanswered since 2024.
Further deepening the crisis is the alleged refusal of the Commissioner for Finance to release ₦400 million approved by the governor since 2024 for judicial needs.
Sources within the judiciary claim the funds remain unpaid, with the governor unable — or unwilling — to compel compliance from his own appointee.
“The commissioner is defying the approval, and the governor appears helpless,” a source said. “It raises serious questions about leadership and control.”
The unfolding welfare and funding crisis has triggered an indefinite strike by magistrates, Presidents of Grade ‘A’ Customary Courts, Legal Research Officers and members of the Judiciary Staff Union of Nigeria (JUSUN).
A recent meeting between Governor Aiyedatiwa and judicial unions ended in deadlock, as workers unanimously rejected what they described as half-measures and empty promises.
According to participants, the governor failed to commit to full financial autonomy as guaranteed by the Constitution.
“At the end of the meeting, our position was plain: no financial autonomy, no work,” a judicial source said.
Since Monday, judicial workers have physically locked judges out of court premises in Akure, sealing the Judiciary Headquarters and halting all court activities statewide.
Official vehicles belonging to judges were seen parked outside locked gates, a stark symbol of the paralysis of justice under the current administration.
By Tuesday, JUSUN formally joined the strike, completely crippling the justice system and leaving litigants stranded, detainees languishing in custody, and legal processes suspended indefinitely.
What has further angered striking workers is what they describe as Governor Aiyedatiwa’s “hypocrisy and ingratitude.”
Judicial sources allege that the governor personally benefitted from favourable judicial processes in the past, yet now presides over what they call the systematic humiliation and impoverishment of the same institution.
“The governor wants obedience without justice,” a judicial officer said. “But the judiciary cannot continue to beg for survival while politicians live in excess.”
Multiple accounts paint a bleak picture of life for judicial officers in Ondo State.
Magistrates reportedly appear in court wearing worn-out shoes, faded suits and patched clothing. Some struggle to afford regular meals, while others rely on public transport daily despite the sensitive nature of their duties.
Observers say the situation mirrors the recent crisis in neighbouring Kogi State, where judiciary workers embarked on a similar strike in December 2025 over welfare neglect—an indication, they argue, of a wider pattern of state-level disregard for judicial independence.
With courts shut, staff unions united, and public confidence in justice delivery eroding, pressure is mounting on Governor Aiyedatiwa to reverse course.
Legal analysts warn that continued paralysis of the judiciary poses grave risks to the rule of law, public safety and democratic governance in Ondo State.