NJC To Ratify New Supreme Court Justices, Forward Names To Tinubu

The National Judicial Council (NJC) will meet on Wednesday and Thursday this week to ratify the appointment of 11 justices for the Supreme Court, as well as judges for the states of the federation.

After completing works on the 22 nominees sent to it by the Federal Judicial Service Commission (FJSC) for openings in the Supreme Court bench, the NJC will forward the names to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, who will, in turn, transmit the same to the Senate for screening and confirmation

The NJC will commence the appointment process, which includes interviews and review of the report of its panel that screened the candidates, on Wednesday and conclude on Thursday by picking 11 names.

Speaking with Daily Sun, a source said, “The council members will exhaustively consider each candidate for appointment and study petitions against them, if any, by their merit. Where allegations are proven, those involved will be rejected. In the end, the 11 candidates found to be credible and capable will be ratified.”

According to the source, the NJC would be thorough in its selection process, adding that in looking at the candidates, where anybody in the ‘reserve’ is found more capable than the ‘priority,’ such candidate will be chosen.

The source disclosed that NJC will also consider and recommend judges for appointment into the Federal High Courts, the National Industrial Court, and heads of courts, as well as judges at the state level.

The names of the new judges for the state High Courts, Customary Courts of Appeal, and Sharia Courts will also be forwarded to state governors for ratification.

By the provisions of paragraph 20 of part one of the third schedule to the 1999 Constitution as amended, the NJC comprises the CJN, who is the chairman; the next most senior Justice of the Supreme Court as the deputy chairman; the President of the Court of Appeal; five retired justices selected by the CJN from the Supreme Court or Court of Appeal; the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court; the President, National Industrial Court of Nigeria; and five chief judges of states to be appointed by the CJN from among the chief judges of the states and of the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, on rotation to serve for two years.

Meanwhile, it was gathered that Justice Musa Dattijo Muhammad, who recently retired from the Supreme Court and criticized the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Olukayode Ariwoola, was the second most ranking justice at the Supreme Court.

He was chairman of the NJC appointment, finance, and constitution review committees.

Justice Muhammad was senior to Ariwoola at the Court of Appeal, but the latter was appointed to the Supreme Court before him.

It was gathered that when Justice Tanko Muhammed retired as the CJN, some people pushed for the convention to be broken for Justice Dattijo Muhammed to become the CJN, but former President Muhammadu Buhari stuck with the seniority protocol and appointed Ariwoola, who was next in rank at the apex court.