ONOZURE DANIA writes about the appointment of the children of retired and serving judges and justices into the Bench while other qualified candidates are denied access
On July 14, 2023, the National Judicial Council recommended Justice Olukayode Ariwoola Jnr, the son of the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Olukayode Ariwoola Snr, for appointment as a Judge of the Federal High Court.
The recommendation was made at the 103rd meeting of the council presided over by the CJN in Abuja. Ariwoola Jnr was recommended for the Federal High Court bench alongside 22 others who passed the screening and interview of the council.
All the recommended candidates are expected to be sworn in after the approval of the NJC recommendations to the President and their respective state governors and confirmation by their state Houses of Assembly as the case may be.
Critics have alleged that the judiciary has been biased and corrupt in its selection process.
On July 26, 2023, a Professor of Practice in International Human Rights Law at Tufts University and former Chairman of the National Human Rights Commission, Chidi Odinkalu, condemned the selection process. In a tweet, he said,” If the legal or judicial genius of the child can manifest itself only when their dad, auntie or uncle is in charge of judicial appointments (or when their genital partner is), it should be evident that the person is unfit for judicial office. But this is #Nigeria, so we’ll argue.”
The first procedural rule for the selection of judges states, “The Federal Judicial Service Commission, state Judicial Service Commission and the Judicial Service Committee of the Federal Capital Territory shall comply with these rules in their advice to the National Judicial Council for nominations or recommendations of candidates for appointment of judicial officers for the Superior Courts of Record under the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended).”
The following rules provide a step-by-step vetting process for prospective judicial officials. In the case of federal court candidates, the head of a federal court first sends a notice to the Chief Justice and the Chairman of the Federal Judicial Service Commission. The federal court head will state the number of judicial officers intended to be proposed for appointment.
Afterwards, a call for expression of interest by suitable candidates by way of public notice is placed on the website of the Judicial Service Commission concerned. The public notice is also sent to suitable courts and the Nigerian Bar Association.
On May 13, the former Chairman, Presidential Advisory Committee Against Corruption, Professor Itsay Sagay, alleged that “sons and daughters of retired and serving judges and justices are being nominated for appointment into sensitive judicial positions at the expense of more qualified candidates without privileged support and backing.” Sagay said the trend, which placed emphasis on favouritism/nepotism over competence, was a pathway to future judicial malfeasance and miscarriage of justice. He urged Nigerians and other stakeholders in the fight against corruption to halt this malpractice now so as to save the nation from grave deterioration in our judicial system.
Also, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Jibrin Okutepa, said there had been persistent outcry by Nigerians about the continued recruitment of sons and daughters and or relations of serving or retired judicial officers to the Bench. Okutepa said the perceptions by Nigerians of undue favouritism to the disadvantages of other well-deserving and well-qualified candidates who have no godfathers and godmothers cannot be dismissed with the wave of hands.
“There is a need for recruitments to the bench not to be hereditary. Nigerians are really worried. In judicial processes either in judgments or recruitments, there is a need to avoid the appearance of impropriety. Appearances of impropriety erode public confidence in the judiciary. While such recruitments may be legal, impropriety is an issue here,” he said.
Similarly Yomi Alliyu (SAN), who supported the appointment of the children of judges and justices stated that the judiciary had become a family affair throughout the world, especially common law nations, adding that this might be due to investments made in buying books and other paraphernalia. He said there are three main streams in the law profession that affect lifestyles of practitioners.
According to him, the choice shapes the practitioners. His children either take to his antics or completely abhor it. Those who admire his life pursue the profession with a view to attaining the same height of their parents.
“This is the situation that leads to many judges having their children aspiring to the bench. Save that a corrupt judge might have a child toeing his path, most of these children of judges perform wonderfully on the Bench starting from My Lord Justice Adenekan Ademola, the son of the first indigenous Chief Justice of Nigeria. They almost always turn out to be good judges. We should encourage it, albeit on merit,” he said.
Another lawyer, Malachy Ugwummadu, admitted the fundamental issues in the recruitment process of judicial officers in Nigeria and by extension the quality and content of justice delivery in Nigeria had been largely compromised.
He said, ”In the event, we must rethink the processes to include public advertisement and rigorous scrutiny….”
Similarly, another lawyer, Ige Asemudara, stated that all judges appointed to the Nigerian Bench are qualified in terms of the book requirement. However, he agreed that there is hardly a Nigerian judge who gets appointed without knowing someone who knows someone or who recommended or appointed him.
“The process should have been whether you know anyone or not, you should be appointed once you have the character, the competence and the book requirements. It is a huge problem,” he said.
He also stated that he had no issues with the appointment of the children of judges or justices as judges once they have the character, the competence and the book qualifications and are equally subjected to the same processes and opportunities that others are subjected to.
Asemudara said it is unfair to judges to just make a blanket complaint that their children are getting appointed as judges. “An ordinary tailor wants his children or some of them to take his vocation. How much more a judge,” he said.
“My noble Lord, M. B. Idris JCA is one of the sons of our erstwhile Honourable Chief Justice, Idris Kutigi. I can stake my head that he is one of the finest judges ever appointed to the Federal High Court bench and now the Court of Appeal bench.
“We also have examples of children of judges appointed as judges and magistrates who are disappointing us. We have some of them in Lagos State here.Yet I will show you one Magistrate called Alogba, few years ago, I did a case before him. I was impressed.
“I hardly conduct cases before the Magistrates’ Court but once I saw the way the gentleman was handling his judicial responsibilities. I told my colleagues I would conduct this case myself instead of sending them.
“I did, I was impressed. His comportment, his understanding of the legal issues was impressive. We have children of nobody appointed to the Bench and they are disappointing everybody. So, it is neither here nor there.
“The recommendation is that whoever the person’s parents are should not matter, once he or she has the character, the competence and other legal requirements and subjected to the same standard of scrutiny as others and he comes out in flying colours, he or she should be appointed. Nothing more, nothing less,” he said.
Israel Mbaebie, a lawyer, stated that in saner climes, it won’t be out of place to have a long lineage of family members toeing the professional lines of their forebears. “We put personal/family interests and consideration far above national/collective good. It’s an anomaly. It’s condemnable,” the lawyer stated.
Challenging people to rise up and protest against such wickedness, Mbaebie said, “Just imagine the Senator Bulkachuwa’s show of shame at the floor of the Red Chambers where he ignobly and unashamedly admitted that he had used his position as the husband to then President of the Court of Appeal, Justice Zainab Bulkachawa, to influence judgments in favour of his political goons.
“In those saner climes, both he and his wife should be answering to the appropriate authorities. Not here. Is it not in Nigeria that a serving Governor of Kano State was caught on camera receiving bribes. Today, the same man has been put forward as the Chairman of the All Progressives Congress. Criminals are simply rewarded rather than being punished.
“This is why we should not worsen the already bad situation by trying to encourage the enthronement of what I call “familitocracy” into our body politic. We aren’t mature for that yet. That’s nepotism on steroids.”
Another lawyer, Kelechukwu Uzoka, reiterated that the selection process for judges should prioritise merit, competence, and qualifications above any form of family or political connections. He warned that appointing individuals to judicial positions solely based on their family ties would undermine the principles of an independent and impartial judiciary and might compromise the integrity of the entire legal system.
Uzoka said this practice, often referred to as “judicial nepotism,” raises questions about the transparency, fairness, and integrity of the judiciary, which is a cornerstone of any democratic society. This pattern of preferential appointments could lead to a decline in the quality and competence of the judiciary.
“Highly qualified and experienced candidates who may be more deserving and capable of serving in such esteemed positions might lose out to less qualified individuals, merely because of their familial affiliations.
“The negative consequences of judicial nepotism extend beyond the immediate impact on the individuals involved. It also has broader implications for the overall functioning of the legal system, as well as its ability to effectively dispense justice.
“The reputation of the judiciary could be tarnished, and it may lead to an erosion of public confidence in the institution responsible for upholding the rule of law.
“The appointment process of judicial officers must be more transparent and merit-based with a view on fostering diversity within the judiciary.
“It is this process that will help the country make significant strides toward ensuring an independent and trustworthy judicial system that serves the best interests of its citizens,” he stated.
