As many as 36 judges might be sacked by the National Judicial Council (NJC) at its next meeting on June 23 due to petitions against them over alleged corruption and unethical conducts.
This was disclosed by the council chairman and Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Aloma Mariam Mukhtar who said that 21 of the said petitions had been listed for consideration after being considered meritorious, while over one hundred others were thrown out by the council over what she termed ‘its frivolity’.
She also revealed that 15 other judges were queried on the basis of petitions alleging corrupt practices and deliberate miscarriage of justice against them.
This correspondent was told on Sunday evening that almost all those queried had submitted their responses to the office of the CJN for onward transmission to the secretariat of the council.
It was also learnt that all the responses would be in weeks before the council meeting which would allow the council to take a holistic consideration of the petitions.
A system source predicted that more than one third of the 36 petitions would attract one form of severe sanction or the other, while about ten of the judges had cases that “were very clear.”
One of such is the immediate past Chief Judge of the Federal Capital Territory High Court, Justice Lawal Gummi who retired in a controversial circumstance two years to the end of his tenure, to become a second-class emir in Zamfara state.
Apart from other cases of alleged unethical collaboration with former Minister of FCT, Nasir el-Rufai on demolition exercise and alleged unaccounted funding of the court by the former minister, the alleged administrative arrest of judgment against his state governor is said to be the high-point of his indictment.
Governor Abdulazziz Yari on a live programme reportedly disclosed that he contacted Gummi over the judgment ceding his Abuja home to the plaintiffs in the suit.
Another high-profile probe is that of the former acting President of the Court of Appeal, Justice Dalhatu Adamu who now heads the Kaduna division of the court.
His 15-month stay in office especially the handling of election petition issues, is said to be the major plank of the investigation against him.
A jurist’s ceremonial robe which cost was considered outrageous is also said to be another administrative issue on the probe radar.
The Chief Registrar of the court was also fingered in the purchase of the controversial robe in London.
Four other Chief Judges also have petitions listed for consideration.
A female judge of the High Court who sat on a matter already determined by the Court of Appeal and reportedly confessed to doing the bidding of her boss; the CJ, is reportedly certain of being on her way out of service.