NJSC Dismisses A Magistrate, Two others

Niger State Judicial Service Commission (NJSC) has dismissed a Chief Magistrate, an Upper Shariah court Judge, and a senior Registrar and compulsorily retired another Registrar for alleged misconduct.

The NJSC secretary, Barrister Hauwa Kulu Isah, said the Commission decided at an emergency meeting at the NJSC Secretariat in Minna.

She said the Chief Magistrate and the Senior Registrar were dismissed immediately from the service.

The commission’s Secretary stated that their dismissal resulted from their involvement in serious official misconduct. He said that the Registrar was involved in collecting gratification from a litigant to grant him bail, the magistrate granted bail without due regard to the laid-down procedures, and a proper record of proceedings was not kept, among other official misconduct.

A judge of the Upper Shari’ah Court was also dismissed for allegedly receiving N800,000  in a land-related dispute case and failing to determine the matter between the parties.

The Secretary of the NSJSC said the actions of the dismissed Judicial officers were in contravention of section 58 (1) (2) (4) (6) and (8) of the Niger State Judicial Service Regulations 2018 and “consequently dismissed under section 61 of the Regulations.”

Similarly, Kulu Isah disclosed that the Commission compulsorily retired a Registrar of Shari’ah Court Bida for conflicts of interest and complexities in administering the estate of a deceased person.

However, she said Sani Aliyu, a Judge of Upper Shar’iah Court Salka, and his Registrar escaped disciplinary action because Barrister Solomon Jiya’s petition against them was dismissed for lack of merit.