Concerns Over Judicial Appointments, Shortage of Supreme Court Justices Emerges

Retiring from the Supreme Court, Justice Musa Dattijo has expressed worries about the concentration of power in the office of the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN) and the purportedly purposeful omission of a South-Easterner on the bench of the highest court.

During his farewell speech, Justice Dattijo said that the Chief Justice of the Philippines (CJN) has unrestricted power because of his position as Chairman of many judicial bodies, such as the Federal Judicial Service Commission (FJSC) and the National Judicial Commission (NJC). In order to guard against any misuse, he demanded that these powers be divided.

Judge Dattijo further criticized the panel that heard the appeals of Peter Obi and Atiku Abubakar, the two candidates running for president, for lacking justices from the South-East and North-Central regions. He voiced worry over the possible repercussions of keeping these areas out of the decision-making process.

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The Supreme Court of Nigeria currently has 10 justices, the fewest in modern Nigerian history, according to Chief Justice Olukayode Ariwoola. The recent retirement of Justice Dattijo and the passing of Justice Chima Nweze have made the issue worse, leaving the Supreme Court with 11 open seats. The country’s legal system may be considerably impacted by the lack of a full bench.

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There has long been a problem with the lack of justices on the Supreme Court, and efforts to replace vacancies are still underway. A number of Nigerian senior attorneys, or SANs, have demanded immediate action to resolve this pressing issue, which they view as a national emergency. They stress that in order to reduce the backlog of cases and maintain the effective operation of the judiciary, more judges must be appointed to the Supreme Court.

Although there have been prior attempts to address this issue, including suggestions for appointments, significant improvement is still to be observed. The dearth of judges on the Supreme Court emphasizes how critical it is to keep the bench full and operational in order to protect the rule of law and guarantee that all Nigerians have prompt access to the courts.

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