Number Of Justices At Supreme Court Reduces To Ten As Dattijo Mohammed Retires, CJN Laments

By Ayodele Oni

Litigants at the Supreme Court whose cases are pending may have to wait for a while, as depletion in number of Justices continues.

The Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Olukayode Ariwoola on Friday revealed that the apex Court is now having the lowest number of Justices in its history.

According to him, there are only 10 Justices on its bench to tackle the heavy workload of pending cases.

Within three years, the number of Justices reduced from 20 to 14, while at its peak, the Court enjoys as many as 21.

Justice Ariwoola spoke on the occasion of retirement of Justice Musa Dattijo Mohammed who attained the mandatory retirement age of 70 years.

The CJN however assured that efforts are on top gear to elevate a sizeable Justices to the bench of the Court.

“With Justice Musa Dattijo leaving us today after the retirement of Hon. Justice Adamu Amina Augie a few weeks ago, we are now left with just 10 Justices on the Supreme Court Bench; being the lowest we have ever had in contemporary history of the Court.

“However, I can confidently assure all the litigant public that efforts are in top gear to get on board a sizeable number of Justices to boost our rank and complement the tremendous effort we have been investing in the business of the Court.

The CJN paid glowing tributes to the retired Justice saying “I am so emotionally overwhelmed, and at the same time, profusely exhilarated to personally witness this uncommon valedictory session.

“This is not because I have never witnessed or presided over valedictory sessions before; but for the fact that we are honouring a quintessential Judicial icon with dazzling qualities and alluring stature who could, in one breath, be classified as a model of excellence that transcends the legal profession.

“My Lord Hon. Justice Musa Dattijo Muhammad in whose honour we assemble here today, is an epitome of jurisprudential finesse; an insuperable lion with an irrepressible voice in the temple of justice.

“We are here to identify with an accomplished jurisprudential iconoclast that has offered the best of his intellect to the advancement of the legal profession through his several years of unblemished and incontrovertible adjudications at different levels of Courts in Nigeria.

“His Lordship has, by all standards, made an incisive inroad into the revered history books of the Nigerian judiciary as that gallant and eminent Justice at the Supreme Court bench who inviolably held sway in the discharge of his judicial functions.

“As second-in-command in the hierarchy of the Supreme Court, my Lord, Justice Dattijo, skilfully aided and supported me virtually in every sphere of administration. He is a specimen of hard work, industry, discipline and high moral rectitude.

“He willingly offered every support and encouragement that any leader would always wish to enjoy from a deputy to effectively meander the often stormy coast of court administration.

“So, by this event heralding his 70th birthday anniversary, the time has come to cease from functioning as a Judicial Officer. Immediately after this Court session, a new

page will ultimately open in the life of my Lord, which His Lordship and an entirely different set of people, that destiny had already assembled along the path of the second phase of his life, will begin to write on.”