The Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Olukayode Ariwoola, will on Wednesday, September 20, administer the oath of office on the nine newly appointed Justices of the Court of Appeal.
The new Justices of the Appellate Court are to be sworn-in at the Main Court auditorium of the Supreme Court of Nigeria.
A statement by the Supreme Court’s Director of Press and Information, Dr. Festus Akande, indicated that the CJN will administer oath of office on the new Court of Appeal Justices by 11am.
The new appellate court Justices are Hannatu Azumi Laja-Balogun from Kaduna State, who was appointed a High Court Judge on 24th May, 1999; Binta Fatima Zubairu from Kaduna State, appointed a High Court Judge on October 31, 2001, and Peter Chudi Obiora from Anambra State, who was sworn-in as High Court Judge on January 17, 2005.
Others are Justices Okon Efreti Abang from Akwa Ibom State, who was appointed a High Court Judge on June 22, 2009; Asma’u Musa Mainoma from the Federal Capital Territory, appointed High Court Judge on February 1, 2013; Lateef Adebayo Ganiyu from Oyo State, who became High Court Judge on June 26, 2014 and Jane Esienanwan Iyang from Cross River State, who was sworn-in as High Court Judge on February 12, 2015.
The rest are Hadiza Rabiu Shagari from Sokoto State, who was elevated to the High Court Bench on February 12, 2015; and Paul Ahmed Bassi from Borno State, appointed to the High Court on July 14, 2017.
Meanwhile, Justice Amina Adamu Augie will formally bow out of the Supreme Court bench on Thursday, September 21, 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, September 15.
Justice Amina Augie was sworn in as Justice of the Supreme Court on November 7, 2016. She graduated with a Second Class Upper Division in Law from 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, Helen Morenikeji Ogunwumiju, Ibrahim Saulawa, Adamu Jauro, Tijjani Abubakar and Emmanuela Akomaye Agim.
Justice Centus Chima Nweze of the Supreme Court passed away in July this year.