The National Judicial Council has set up 15 panels to investigate two state chief justices and 13 other judicial officers over alleged misconduct.
The inauguration of the panels was announced in a statement on Monday by Soji Oye who is the spokesman of the NJC.
The statement reads in part: “The National Judicial Council, under the chairmanship of the Hon. Chief Justice of Nigeria, Hon. Mr. Justice Walter Nkanu Samuel Onnoghen, GCON, at its 83rd meeting constituted 15 committees to investigate various allegations in the petitions written against 15 judicial officers, including two chief judges.”
In the statement, Oye explained that the decision to set up the panel followed the consideration of reports of two preliminary complaints assessment committees which looked into petitions written against the judicial officers at federal and state levels.
He said although two petitions written against a judge of the Federal High Court, Abuja, John Tsoho, and Acting Chief Judge of Ondo, O. O. Akeredolu, were withdrawn, 29 others were dismissed for lacking merit.
The statement explained further that Al-Sagr National Insurance Company which wrote against Hon. Mr. Justice Tsoho withdrew its petition since the Hon. Judge had delivered the ruling in its case.
It stated too that Chief Raheem A. Badmus who wrote against Hon. Justice Akeredolu also voluntarily withdrew his petition for personal reasons.
Said the NJC: “Council treated the two petitions as withdrawn since it did not find anything in them sufficiently serious for further consideration as stipulated in regulation 9 (1) of the judicial discipline regulations.”
The statement reads further: “Council considered and found worthy of further investigation, the petition written by Azi A. Phillip on behalf of All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN), Plateau State chapter, accusing Hon. Justice P. D. Damulak, the immediate past chief judge of Plateau State of bias, for failure to make his judgment in Suit No. PLD/J/236/16 delivered on 4th November, 2016 available to him till the time he wrote the petition.
“Council however decided not to constitute an investigative committee to look into the matter, because the chief judge had already retired from service and therefore no longer in the employment of the National Judicial Council.”
The NJC also said it dismissed the petitions against a Judge of the High Court in Abia, L. T. C. Eruba, and a Judge of the Sharia’h Court of Appeal in Kano, Grand Kadi Abdullahi Waiya.
In addition, the NJC issued two letters of advice to Hon. Mr. Justice M. A. Dada of the Lagos State High Court of Justice and Justice Chukwudi Charles Okaa of the Anambra State High Court for violation of extant laws in the course of their judicial duties.
The petitions that prompted the actions of the council were written by Dayo Adamolekun, Esq. & Ridwanulah Olanite, Esq. and Reverend F. U. Ekavhiare & Associates respectively.
The council also decided to report Adesina Ogunlana, Esq., to the Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee (L.P.D.C.) for misconduct, having said to have used uncouth language in a petition written to the National Judicial Council against Hon. Justice O. O. Atilade, the immediate past chief judge of Lagos State.
