By Michael Ofulue, Osogbo

The Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice in Osun State, Oluwole Jimi-Bada, has decried the recent attack by suspected arsonists on the Osun State High Court in Ilesa, describing it as an unfortunate and barbaric act that will not go unpunished.

Jimi-Bada, who visited the court premises to assess the level of damage, was accompanied by the Commissioner for Health, Jola Akintola, and the Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Dosu Babatunde (Esq).

The officials inspected the charred courtrooms and burnt registry, expressing shock at the scale of destruction.

Speaking during the inspection, the Attorney-General lamented the recurring attacks on the court, recalling similar incidents in the past.

“This is not the first time this is happening. I was informed that in 2017, the former Court 2 was attacked and burnt. Just last year, electric cables were carted away from this same court. This nonsense must stop,” he said.

He emphasised the urgency of securing the court premises to prevent further occurrences, noting that government would no longer wait for judicial bureaucracy before taking action.

“We need to secure this place. We’ll start almost immediately. We can’t abandon the court; the judge cannot sit under these circumstances,” he stated.

Bada revealed that due to past delays in submitting renovation requests by the judiciary, the Ministry of Justice had taken steps to include court renovations in its 2025 budget.

“We cannot continue to wait for memos from the judiciary that never come. That is why we’ve brought engineers from the Ministry of Works to assess and commence renovation across the entire compound,” he said.

He added that although provisions for security exist in the judiciary’s running costs, there has been a visible lack of security presence.

“As a government, we are taking it up. Mr Governor personally called my attention to this attack and directed me to assess the damage. We are beginning with the Ilesa High Court and will extend the renovation to other judicial divisions,” he added.

Condemning the act as a direct assault on justice, Bada described the attack as more than barbaric.

“It is shocking and troubling that someone could summon the effrontery to set a court of law ablaze. Justice will surely catch up with the perpetrators. It’s just a matter of time,” he declared.

The government, he assured, is committed to restoring functionality and dignity to the affected court while putting in place necessary measures to forestall future attacks.