National Judicial Council has reacted to reports that the Supreme Court has shortlisted 22 justices to be added to its ranks.
The National Judicial Council (NJC) has reacted to the shortlist of 22 justices by the Federal Judicial Service Commission (FJSC) for the bench of the Supreme Court of Nigeria.
NJC said it is not aware of the shortlist. This was revealed by NJC Director of Information, Barrister Soji Oye.
Oye said that the nomination has not been brought to his knowledge.
The FJSC reportedly sent a list of 22 justices from the Court of Appeal for consideration by the NJC for elevation to the apex court.
The FJSC list, released on Thursday, showed a regional distribution of nominees, with North-Central and South East each having six nominees, and North-East, South-West, and South-South each having two nominees, while North-West has four nominees.
This announcement followed the disclosure in September 2023 that the Supreme Court’s justices had diminished to 10 as against the 21 stipulated by the Constitution.
Below is the list of the nominated justices:
SOUTH EAST
Hon Justice Nwaoma Uwa (Abia State)—Priority
Hon Justice Onyekachi Otisi (Abia State)—Reserve
Hon Justice Obande Ogbuinya (Ebonyi State)-Priority
Hon Justice Theresa Orji-Abadua (Imo State)—Reserve
Hon Justice Anthony Ogakwu (Enugu State)—Priority
Hon Justice Chioma Nwosu-Iheme (Imo State)—Reserve
SOUTH-SOUTH:
Hon Justice Moore Adumein (Bayelsa State)—Priority
Hon Justice Biobele Georgewill (Rivers State)–Reserve
SOUTH WEST:
Hon Justice Adewale Abiru (Lagos State)—Priority
Hon Justice Olubunmi Oyewole (Osun State)—Reserve
NORTH CENTRAL:
Hon Jummai Sankey (Plateau State)—Priority
Hon Justice Muhammad Ibrahim Sirajo (Plateau State)—Reserve
Hon Justice Stephen Adah (Kogi State)—Priority
Hon Justice Ridman Maiwada Abdullahi (Nassarawa State)—Reserve
Hon Justice Baba Idris (Niger State)—Priority
Hon Justice Joseph Ikyegh (Benue State)—Reserve
NORTH EAST:
Hon Justice Haruna Simon Tsammani (Bauchi State)—Priority
Hon Justice Abubakar Talba (Adamawa State)
NORTH WEST:
Hon Justice Muhammad Lawal Shuaibu (Jigawa State)—Priority
Hon Justice Bello Aliyu (Zamfara State)—Reserve
Hon Justice Abubakar Sadiq Umar (Kebbi State)—Priority
Hon Justice Abdullahi Mahmud Bayero (Kano State)—Reserve
Although the NJC Director of Information did not categorically deny the nomination, he declined to confirm it on the ground that the proposal had not been brought to the attention of his office.