Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Hon. Justice Mariam Aloma Mukthar, has charged newly sworn-in justices of the Court of Appeal to abide by their judicial oath of office.
She gave the charge yesterday while administering the oath of office on 25 new justices of the Court of Appeal at the Supreme Court Chambers in Abuja.
She said: “The judiciary will not tolerate, acts of misconduct and disloyalty from judges, and I urge you to maintain true allegiance to your judicial oaths and abide by the demands of the code of conduct for judicial officers. There shall be zero tolerance to judicial corruption and misconduct in the Nigerian judiciary.”
Reminding the new justices of the forthcoming general elections, Justice Mukthar advised them to be politically neutral.
“As judicial officers you will soon be presiding over election cases, therefore, as judges you must be politically neutral and rise up to safe guard our democracy, and ensure that the rights of litigants and the tenets of justice are upheld.”
The new appeal court justices included Justices Hamma Akawu Barka (Gombe State), Joseph Jude Jella (Taraba state), Bitrus G. Sanga (Bauchi state), Muhammed Mustapha (Borno state),Yargata Nimpar (Gombe state), Sa’idu Tanko Hussein (Kogi state), Mudashiru N. Oniyangi (Kwara state) and Amina Audi Wambai (Niger state).
Others are Justices Ridwan Maiwada Abdullahi (Nasarawa state), Tani Y. Hassan (Kano state), Muhammed Lawal Shuaibu (Jigawa state), Kadi Musa Hassan Alkali (Kaduna state), Jamilu Y. Tukur (Katsina state), Paul Obi Elechi (Ebonyi state), Ugochukwu A. Ogakwu (Enugu state), Nonyerem Okoronkwo (Imo state), Joseph E. Ekanem (Akwa Ibom state), F.E. Oho (Delta state), Abimbola O.O. Adejumo (Edo state).
Justices Bolokuromo M. Ugo (Bayelsa state), Biobele A. Georgewill (Rivers state), Oludotun A. Adefope-Okojie (Ogun state), Misitura O. Bolaji-Yusuf (Oyo state), J.O.K.Oyewole (Osun state) and O.E. Williams-Dawudu (Lagos state) also made the list.
