A group under the auspices of the Oduduwa Descendants Coalition for Justice has dragged Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekun of the Supreme Court of Nigeria before the Code of Conduct Bureau over alleged false declaration of assets.
As Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Olukayode Ariwoola, prepares to exit office on August 22 when he attains the retirement age of 70, Justice Kekere-Ekun who is the most senior among the 21 justices of the apex court is most likely to be his successor.
In a letter dated August 10, 2024, and signed by the National Coordinator, Comrade Kehinde Johnson Olawale, the group said the petition is to endure a proper investigation into the assets declared by the judge.
Olawale said the petition is crucial as Justice Kekere-Ekun is likely to attain the office of the CJN.
In the petition seen by our correspondent, the group accused the judge of contravening the law by not fully declaring her assets when she became a justice of the Court of Appeal.
The group also accused Kekere-Ekun of false assets declaration upon becoming a judge of the apex court and urged the CCB to investigate the allegations.
The petition reads in parts, “We are a body of various socio-political and cultural groups with a mission of advancing good conduct and ethical values on the part of those occupying public office.
“It is because the subject of this petition is aspiring to occupy the highest judicial office in the land that makes it expedient for us to forward this petition, with the hope that it will be treated with dispatch and a high level of seriousness.
At the various times she occupied public office as a judicial officer, Hon. Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekun failed or refused to abide by the provisions of the Code of Conduct Bureau and Tribunal Act, which has been in force since 1991.
“For example, in May 1999, at the end of her tenure as Chairman of The Robbery and Firearms Tribunal, Ikeja Zone II, Lagos, she failed to submit her assets declaration form to your Bureau, as mandated by the Enabling Act and the Nigeria Constitution. Also in 2013, at the end of her tenure as a Justice of the Court of Appeal Nigeria, she failed to fill and submit her assets declaration form.
“The assets declaration form she eventually filled and submitted upon assumption of office as a Justice of the Supreme Court of Nigeria contained false declarations and unverified statements.
“By this petition, we are requesting that you use your good offices to ensure that the above allegations are thoroughly investigated, to avoid the big embarrassment that may befall the nation if the right thing is not done, timorously.
“We trust that the report of your investigation will assist the National Judicial Council and the Senate of the Nigerian National Assembly to come to a balanced decision as to the suitability of Hon. Justice Kekere-Ekun for appointment as Chief Justice of Nigeria.” the group said.
CJN’s Likely Successor In Fake Assets Declaration Scandal, Dragged Before CCB is first published on The Whistler Newspaper