A Month To Retirement, CJN Ariwoola Prepares To Swear In 12 New FCT High Court Judges

The Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Olukayode Ariwoola, who is due to retire in August, prepares to inaugurate 12 new judges at the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja.

CJN Ariwoola will preside over the formal swearing-in ceremony, administering oaths to twelve newly appointed judges.

Director of Press at the Supreme Court, Festus Akande, disclosed that the event is scheduled for Wednesday, July 10, 2024, at the Main Courtroom of the Supreme Court at 10 a.m. (local time, WAT).

The scheduled inauguration will add to the existing 57 judges, ultimately raising the number of FCT Judges to 69.

According to Akande, the new appointees are Buetnaan Mandy Bassi from Plateau State; Ademuyiwa Olakunle Oyeyipo from Kwara State; Bamodu Odunayo Olutomi from Lagos State; Iheabunike Anumaenwe Godwin from Imo State; Odo Celestine Obinna from Enugu State; and Hauwa Lawal Gummi from Zamfara State.

Others include Sarah Benjamin Inesu Avoh from Bayelsa State; Maryam Iye Yusuf from Kogi State; Ariwoola Oluwakemi Victoria from Oyo State; Lesley Nkesi Belema Wike from Rivers State; Ibrahim Tanko Munirat from Bauchi State; and Abdulrahman Usman from Taraba State.

These new appointees emerged following the recommendation of the National Judicial Council (NJC), held on May 15 and 16 during its 105th meeting.

However, this was after the NJC’s Interview Committee on the Appointment of Judicial Officers of all Superior Courts of Record in Nigeria recommended 86 candidates for appointment to the bench, both for federal and state courts.

Of the 86 candidates, the committee recommended some for judicial positions at the Court of Appeal and the High Court of the FCT.

The council also recommended candidates for appointment as judges of the High Courts, the Sharia Courts of Appeal, and the Customary Courts of Appeal of various states, following approval of the President for federal courts or state governors for state courts.

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Mayowa Durosinmi

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Mayowa Durosinmi is a Nigerian investigative reporter for West Africa Weekly with reports focusing on politics, human rights, security and health in West Africa and the Sahel region.

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