NJC probes 8 judges over misconduct

  National Judicial Council (NJC) has  set up an eight-member committee to investigate eight judicial officers who were the subjects of petitions for alleged misconduct.

   The NJC took the decision to empanel the committee to probe the eight after deliberating on the report of its Preliminary Complaints Assessment Committee. It had received 35 petitions against 37 judges of federal and state high courts. The remaining petitions were summarily dismissed for lack of merit, being subjudice, concerning administrative matters, or that such petitions were matters for appeal.

    The dismissed petitions were against Justice Adamu Abdu-Kafarati, the immediate past Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, Justices Anwuli Chikere, H.I.O. Oshoma, Ayo Emmanuel, all of the Federal High Court;  Justice J.D. Peters, National Industrial Court of Nigeria; Justice S.E. Aladetoyinbo (rtd), of the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory; Justice Opeyemi Oke (rtd), Chief Judge of Lagos State;  and Justices K.A. Jose, S.S. Ogunsanya, T.A. Oyekan-Abdullahi, O.O. Femi-Adeniyi and D.T. Okuwobi, all of the Lagos State High Court of Justice.

Others are Justice Mojisola Idayat Sule, Oyo State High Court;  Justices R.D. Harriman, A.O. Omamogbo, Michael Nduka Obi, High Court of Justice, Delta State; Justice E.N. Thompson, Rivers State High Court;  Justice Inaikende Eradiri, High Court, Bayelsa State; Justices N.B. Ukoha and B.C. Iheka of the High Court of Justice, Imo State; Justices F.I.N. Ngwu, R.O. Odugu, Enugu State High Court; Justice Abdulkadir H. Suleiman, Bauchi State High Court; and Justice Garba Abdulkadir of the Katsina State High Court of Justice.

The statement added that, “Council also approved the recommendation of two committees earlier set up to investigate Hon. Justice Winifred I.A. Effiong of Akwa Ibom State High Court of Justice and Hon. Justice Bello Aliyu Gusau of High of Justice, Zamfara State, which absolved them of any judicial misconduct.”

Meanwhile,  the council, under the chairmanship of the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Ibrahim Muhammad, has  recommended the appointment of 22 judges, comprising four justices of the Supreme Court and  four heads of court.

The appointments were made by the NJC after its meeting of October 22 and 23, which considered the list of candidates presented by its Interview

SUN