NJC Dismisses Petitions Against Retired Justice Odili,  25 Others

The National Judicial Council NJC, has dismissed petitions written against a retired Supreme Court Justice, Mary Ekaego Peter Odili and 25 other judicial officers in the country.

In the petition, they were accused of professional misconduct in the discharge of their duties.

Justice Odili escaped being investigated by the council on the ground that she had retired as a judicial officer while 25 other petitions were thrown out for various reasons ranging from lack of merit, lack of diligent prosecution, withdrawal, being subjudice and for the subject judge having retired from service.

However, seven  State High Court Judges indicted by the NJC’S investigation committee are to face probe panels that would determine the level of their culpability.

A statement by the NJC’S Director of Information, Mr Soji Oye, yesterday, in Abuja, explained that the petition against the judicial officers were dismissed at a meeting presided over by the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Olukayode Ariwoola.

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At the meeting, the NJC came up with a policy barring Judicial Officers from switching henceforth from High Court of Justice to the Customary Court of Appeal and vice versa.

The only exception allowed is when a new Customary Court of Appeal is established in a state and judges who indicate interest to go to the Customary Court of Appeal will be allowed to proceed.

Under the new policy, once established, the candidates for the headship of the Court must be drawn from that Court only, even if all the Judges of the Court are junior to their counterparts in other Courts.

Meanwhile, the has council recommended 37 judicial officers for appointment to the president and seven governors as justices of the Court of Appeal, heads of court and judges of the High Court and Customary Courts of Appeal.