As the tenure of the Chief Justice of Nigeria, (CJN) Justice Olukayode Ariwooala comes to an end on August 22, the National Judicial Council on Friday, recommended Justice Kudirat Mourorayo Kekere-Ekun as his successor.
Justice Kere-ekun who is the most senior among the current 21 justices of the Supreme Court, is set to become just the second female to hold the position after Mariam Aloma Mukhtar, who was CJN between July 2012 and November 2014.
The judiciary in recent years has been in the eye of the storm, with numerous calls for reforms which will see the judiciary act more independent and transparently in the discharge of its duties.
With the bill on welfare of judicial officers being signed into law by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the issue which remained a recurring topic at judicial events, has now been put to bed as it stipulates 300 per cent salary increment, for all judicial officers, the first time in decades.
Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekun comes with a lot of experience, at 66 she has served as a supreme Court judge for 11 years after her elevation on July 8, 2013.
She is also a life Bencher, a member of the International Association of Women Judges and its president.
With the office of the CJN being the highest judicial office in the land, it lies on the office holder to ensure the judiciary which has been embroiled in a crisis of lack of public confidence takes back its position as a reputable temple of justice.
There is now an urgent need to step forward in treating other issues which has plagued the judiciary, as it will go a long way to chart a path for restoration of the faith of the common man on the judiciary.
As CJN, Justice Kekere-Ekun will have to weather the storm on the issue of corruption in the sector, however, there are other areas of conflict she needs to address.
Conflicting Judgments
The issue of inconsistencies and conflicting judgements has become a source of ridicule for the judiciary with various courts of coordinate jurisdiction contradicting one another with rulings and judgements on same cases.
One of such cases is the conflicting interim injunctions on the Kano state emirates tussle between Aminu Ado Bayero and Muhammadu Sanusi II.
The matter saw Justice A.M. Liman of the Federal High Court in Kano, Justice Amina Aliyu of the Kano State High Court and Justice S.A Amobeda of the Federal High Court, Kano, all issuing conflicting ex parte orders on the enactment of the Kano State Emirate Council Law 2024, removing Bayero as Emir and replacing him with Sanusi.
The issue prompted CJN Ariwooala, on May 30, 2024, to summon the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, Justice John Tsoho, and Chief Judge of Kano State High Court, Justice Dije Aboki for an emergency meeting in his chambers, to discuss about the issue.
He said the Judiciary “has been treated to an unpalatable cocktail of misleading and conflicting judgments as well as frivolous interlocutory orders emanating from courts of coordinate jurisdictions, which have literally attempted to make a mockery of our judicial system and flagrantly desecrate the revered Temple of Justice.
“It is an embarrassment to the nation’s jurisprudence and we will never handle it with levity. Punitive measures must definitely be meted out to such erring Judges.
“We have already activated the process of reining-in such errant Judges with a view to making them face the consequences of their despicable and odious conduct,” he had stated.
Justice Kekere-Ekun needs to step in and ensure that there is a lasting solution to this, to save the sector from ridicule.
Controversial Judgements:
Over the years, there have been a lot of controversial Judgements which have brought into doubts, the integrity of the judiciary.
The incoming CJN, Justice Kekere-Ekun was caught up in one of such scenarios, having read the judgement that sacked former Governor of Imo state, Emeka Ihedioha of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, declaring Hope Uzodinma of the All Progressive Congress, winner of the 2019 governorship election in the state.
The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC had on March 11, 2019, declared Ihedioha winner of the election, with a total of 273,404 votes to defeat his closest rival, Uche Nwosu of the Action Alliance, AA, who polled 190,364 votes.
The duo was followed by candidate of the All Progressive Grand Alliance, APGA, Ifeanyi Ararume with 114,676 votes, while Uzodinma and Ihedi Ohakim of the Young Progressive Party came in 4th and 5th with 96,458 and 527 votes respectively.
The Imo State Governorship Election Tribunal led by Justice Justice Umar Dogondaji, dismissed all suits filed by Nwosu, Ararume and Uzodinma challenging the victory of Ihedioha at the poll. Their position was echoed by the Court of Appeal, Owerri which dismissed the suits by Split decision, with Justice Frederick Oho, the only member of the Panel with a contrary judgement on the case.
All was set for the Judgement of the Apex Court, which according to the expectation of many, should see the dismissal of all appeals against Ihedioha’s victory at the polls.
However, this was not the case, as Justice Kekere-Ekun delivering the unanimous decision of the seven-member panel of the apex court sacked Ihedioha and declared Uzodinma who came a distant fourth as winner of the election.
In the judgment, Justice Kekere-Ekun, said that results in 388 polling units were unlawfully excluded during the collation of the final governorship election result in the state.
According to her, with the results from the 388 polling units added, Uzodinma polled a majority of the lawful votes and ought to have been declared the winner of the election.
However, issues were raised on why she did not provide the details of the votes scored by each of the candidates from the controversial 388 polling units, as it ascribed 213,695 votes to Uzodinma, giving Ihedioha 1,903 votes and not stating anything about the remaining 68 candidates.
Other members of the Panel included former CJN, Chief Justice Ibrahim Tanko Mohammed, Justice Nwali Sylvester Ngwuta, current CJN Ariwooala, Justice Amiru Sanusi, Justice Amina Adamu Augie, and Justice Uwani Musa Abba Aji.
Reacting, the PDP, led by its then national chairman, Uche Secondus, described the judgment as a miscarriage of justice, drawing a question mark on the integrity of the judiciary.
The judgement on the 2023 senatorial elections, in Yobe North, that saw Ahmed Lawan emerge as Senatorial candidate of the APC, ahead of Bashir Sheriff Machina, despite not contesting the party’s primaries, underlines the fragilities in the judicial sector.
The judgement delivered by Justice Cletus Nweze saw Machina’s case dismissed based on the technicality that he did not commence his suit at the Federal High Court, by an Originating Summon instead of a writ of summons, as it has allegations of fraud.
Also, in the case of current Senate President, Godswill Akpabio and Udom Ekpoudom for candidacy of the APC for Akwa Ibom North West Senatorial District, the Panel of the apex court which had Justice Kekere-Ekun as a member, in a unanimous judgement, said the Federal High Court and the Court of Appeal were wrong to have assumed jurisdiction in the suit because the issue of candidates’ nomination lies squarely with political parties, whereas the current Senate president did not participate in the senatorial primaries, having been part of the presidential primaries.
These judgements and others are believed to be controversial and may have further diminished the confidence the people have in the Judiciary.
Personal Controversies:
Some of her critics point to her involvement in some cases that have had significant political implications, questioning whether her elevation to the CJN could lead to further politicisation of the judiciary. To further heighten this, she is married to Akin Kekere-Ekun, who is said to be a chieftain of the APC.
This brings back memories of Justice Zainab Adamu Bulkachuwa, former President of the Court of Appeal of Nigeria whose husband, Senator Adamu Muhammad Bulkachuwa made shocking revelations about her tenure.
Speaking at the floor of the Senate, on June 17, 2023, Senator Bulkachuwa said, “My wife, whose freedom and independence I encroached upon while (she) was in office, and she has been very tolerant and accepted my encroachment and extended her help to my colleagues.”
In another embarrassing development, Justice Kekere-Ekun and other Supreme Court justices were denied visa by the United States (US) embassy in Nigeria on February 17, 2023, to travel for judges’ conference in the US.
In the letter rejecting Justice Kekere-Ekun’s visa application, which was signed by Jay M. Sorensen, an American Consular officer in Abuja, the US government cited “sanctioned activities” as the reason for the denial.
This incident occurred just three years after the controversial supreme court judgement on Imo state, as the country’s authorities denied some justices visas for alleged corruption.
Way Forward:
The task ahead of the Incoming CJN will now require a total reform of the sector, bringing to an end, judicial corruption, inefficiency, and enhance the need for greater access to justice for all Nigerians.
At the National Judicial Summit on Justice, hosted by the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Prince Lateef Fagbemi, the Nigeria Bar Association and the NJC, the participants including the CJN, Ariwooala, the Nigerian Bar Association President, Yakubu Maikyau and other critical stakeholders, including Justice Kekere-Ekun, validated and adopted the revised National Policy on Justice, 2024-2028, which will bring about huge reforms to the sector.
The Incoming CJN should therefore, see to the implementation of the policy and the galvanisation of other parastatals under the judiciary, such as the NJC, the NBA, the NJI, the courts, etc, to ensure that they all live up to expectations.
Justice Kekere-Ekun if confirmed, should ensure that with the full compliment of judges for the court, there is quick and unbiased dispensation of Justice, with erring judges brought to book instantly.
It might take a while, but gradually, the judiciary will begin to gain public trust and once again become the hope of the common man.
FEATURE: CJN Designate Kekere-Ekun: The Task Ahead is first published on The Whistler Newspaper
