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27 Judges To Face NJC Probe Over Alleged Judicial Misconduct

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The National Judicial Council (NJC) has constituted four probe panels to investigate 27 high court judges in the country over various alleged judicial misconduct brought against them.

This is as the Council issued a letter of advice to Justice O. M. Olagunju of Oyo State High Court to be circumspect as a Judicial Officer before acting, even in the most challenging situation.

Justice Olagunju was said to have used uncouth language in a letter addressed to the Chief Justice of Nigeria, challenging the Council’s decision and its Policy Direction on the appointment of President Court of the Customary Court of Appeal, Oyo State.

At its 106th meeting presided over by the outgoing Chief Justice of Nigeria CJN, Olukayode Ariwoola, NJC considered the report of its Preliminary Complaints Assessment Committee on 22 petitions written against 27 Judicial Officers of the Federal and State High Courts.

Based on the report of the preliminary committee, the Council em paneled four Committees to investigate allegations in the petitions that were found meritorious.

A statement by the NJC Director of Information, Mr Soji Oye in Abuja however said that the remaining 18 petitions were discountenanced for lacking in merit, abandoned or being subjudice.

The discountenanced petitions are against Hon. Justice Monica B. Dongban-Mensem, President Court of Appeal, Hon. Justices E. O. Williams Dawodu, B. A. Georgewill, Yargata Timpar, S. D. Samchi, Aisha B. Aliyu, A. A. Aderibigbe M. L. Shuaibu, H. A. O. Abiru and Abdulazeez Waziri all of the Court of Appeal.Others are Hon. Justice John Tsoho, Chief Judge, Federal High Court, Hon. Justices Z. B. Abubakar, James. Kolawole Omotosho, Sunday B. Onu all of the Federal High Court and Justice Okon E. Abang when he was serving at the Federal High Court.

The rest are Hon. Justice Kayode Agunloye of the FCT High Court, Hon. Justice Babagana Karumi of the High Court Borno State, Hon. Justice Maimuna A. Abubakar of the High Court of Niger State, Hon. Justice A. A. Aderibigbe of Osun State High Court and Hon. Justice Aisha B. Aliyu of Nasarawa State High Court.

Besides, NJC placed five Judges on its pre-sanction Watch List register for poor performance and would be recommended to the Council for appropriate sanction if they do not improve on their performance.

Justice Ariwoola in the meeting being the last one before his retirement, appreciated the cooperation he received from members of the Council and the Council’s Secretariat and implored them to extend the same to his successor.

Members of the Council in return eulogised the outgoing CJN and Chairman one after the other and wished him good health in retirement.

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Tinubu not occupied with 2027 election – Presidency

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The Presidency has stated that President Bola Tinubu is not focused on the 2027 election.

Tinubu’s Special Adviser on Media and Public Communications, Sunday Dare said the president is currently concerned and focused on his economic policies that would improve the lives of Nigerians.

Posting on his X page, Dare said Tinubu is concerned with the long-term impact of his policies than political manoeuvring ahead of 2027.

“We’ve seen our foreign reserves go up. We’ve seen inflation come down. We’ve seen our trade surplus go up. We’ve seen exports go up and imports drop.

“We’ve seen the investments that have been attracted—over $50 billion. We are seeing prices dropping. We have clear data, and you have a President that is clearly in the driver’s seat, and he has stayed the course of the decisions he has taken.

“And I think that the next election is not really in his view right now. It’s how to make sure that at the end of his first term, he can sit back and say, ‘I have impacted the lives of Nigerians. I have turned this economy around.’”

His comment is coming amid moves to birth a political coalition that is believed would give Tinubu a run for his money in 2027.

Former Kaduna State governor, Nasir El-Rufai recently visited some top leaders in Nigeria following his criticisms of the All Progressives Congress, APC.

After his visits, El-Rufai defected from APC to the Social Democratic Party, SDP, amid moves to intensify the birth of the coalition.

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Emirate tussle: Sanusi remains Emir – Kano govt

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Kano State Commissioner for Justice and Attorney General, Barrister Haruna Isa Dederi has cleared air that the ruling of the Court of Appeal, Abuja division, on the State Emirship tangle did not in anyway invalidate the reinstatement of Muhammadu Sanusi II as the 16th emir of Kano.

Dederi declared that, “having passed a landmark verdict on January 10, 2025, that reaffirmed the power of the Kano State government to reappoint Sanusi, it is impossible for the Court of Appeal to set aside or quash it’s own decision on the same matter.

”The Attorney General made the position known to journalists while reacting to Friday ruling of the Appellate Court on the application for stay of execution filed by Alh. Aminu Baba Dan Agundi, one of the kingmakers loyal to the 15th Emir of Kano, Alh. Aminu Ado Bayero, pending determination of the appeal at the apex court.

According to Dederi, the matter is “functua officio”, adding that only the Supreme Court has the power to set aside the decision of the Appeal Court handed by Justice Mohammad Mustapha on January 10, 2025.

“The Appeal Court today, after hearing their application for a stay of execution, ruled that the status quo should rather be maintained as it is now, until after the judgment of the Supreme Court. The have filed an appeal at the Supreme Court.

“It doesn’t mean that the judgment delivered on January 10, 2025, has been quashed. That judgment is still standing and still in place and subsisting.

The Court of Appeal cannot reverse its own decision. It is not possible. It is only a supreme Court that has the power to set aside the judgment given by a lower court,” Dederi noted.

Recall that on January 10, 2025, a three-member panel of Court of Appeal, Abuja division, led by Justice Mohammad Mustapha set aside the judgment of Justice A. Liman of the Federal High Court, Kano, which nullified the steps/actions taken by the Kano State Government pursuant to the Kano State Emirate Council (Repeal) Law 2024, including the appointment of Sanusi Lamido Sanusi as the 16th Emir of Kano.

Dissatisfied with the verdict, DanAgundi had since proceeded to the Supreme Court to upturn the lower court’s verdict.

Dan Agundi equally filed a motion for stay of execution of Justice Mustapha’s Judgment pending the hearing and determination of the Supreme Court judgment on the matter.

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Senator Abiru bags Responsive Representation for Good Governance Award from SPC

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The Chairman, Senate Committee on Banking, Insurance and other Financial Institutions , Senator Adetokunbo Abiru (APC Lagos East), has been conferred with ” Responsive Representation for Good Governance Award ” by the Senate Press Corps.

The Award as stated by the Chairman of the Corps , Mr Taiye Odewale , during presentation on Wednesday in Abuja, was in recognition of Senator Abiru’s quality membership in the Senate and responsive representation of people in Lagos East Senatorial District .

According to the SPC Chairman, “Senator Abiru’s legislative inputs in plenary and at committees’ level in the Senate over the last four years have contributed immensely to good governance – driven legislations at the federal level aside giving the people of Lagos East responsive representation .

“Responsiveness of Senator Abiru’s representation of people of Lagos East Senatorial District in the Senate since December 2020, cuts across human, capital and communities development through series of well conceptualized and envisioned empowerment programmes for different categories of constituents”

In his remarks after the award presentation , elated Senator Abiru who dedicated the award to his entire staff in Abuja and Lagos East Senatorial District, said is call for him to do more.

“I thank the entire members of the Senate Press Corps for confering this award on me based on their parameters of assessment and dedicate it to my entire staff from the Senior Legislative Aide (SLA) to other staff here in Abuja and down to Lagos East .

“I’m motivated by the award to do more for my constituents in Lagos East as their Senator and to Nigeria, by adding the required value to the Senate at all times, for good law making and good governance”, he said.

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