The Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Olukayode Ariwoola will on Wednesday, September 20, administer the oath of office to the newly appointed nine Justices of the Court of Appeal.
The new Appellate Court Justices are to be inaugurated at the Main Court auditorium of the Supreme Court of Nigeria.
A statement by the Director of Press and Information of the Supreme Court Dr. Festus Akande said that the CJN will administer the oath of office to the new Court of Appeal Justices by 11:00 a.m.
The new appellate court Justices are, Justices Hannatu Azumi Laja-Balogun from Kaduna State, Binta Fatima Zubairu also from Kaduna State, and Peter Chudi Obiora from Anambra State.
Others are Justices Okon Efreti Abang from Akwa Ibom State, Asma’u Musa Mainoma from the Federal Capital Territory, Lateef Adebayo Ganiyu from Oyo State and Jane Esienanwan Iyang from Cross River State.
The rest are Justice Hadiza Rabiu Shagari from Sokoto State, and Paul Ahmed Bassi from Borno State, appointed to the High Court on 14th July 2017.
Meanwhile, Justice Amina Adamu Augie will formally retire from the Supreme Court’s Bench on Thursday, 21st September 2023, having attained the mandatory retirement age of 70 years on Sunday, 3rd September 2023.
The traditional valedictory court session in her honour which ought to have taken place on September 3 was delayed due to the annual vacation of the Court which ended on Friday, 15th September, 2023.
Justice Amina Augie was sworn in as Justice of the Supreme Court on 7th November 2016. She graduated with a Second Class Upper Division in Law from the University of Ife (now Obafemi Awolowo University) in 1977 and was called to the Nigerian Bar in 1978.
With Justice Augie’s retirement, the Supreme Court is now left with 11 Justices as against the Constitutionally stipulated 22 Justices.
The remaining Justices on the Apex Court bench are Chief Justice of Nigeria, CJN, Olukayode Ariwoola, Musa Dattijo, Kudirat Motomori Kekere-Ekun, John Inyang Okoro, Uwani Abba Aji, Garba Lawal and Helen Morenikeji Ogunwumiju.
The rest are Ibrahim Saulawa, Adamu Jauro, Tijjani Abubakar and Emmanuel Akomaye Agim.
Recalled that Justice Centus Chima Nweze of the Supreme Court passed away in July this year.
Dominica Nwabufo
