CJN Muhammad to meet six summoned chief judges in Abuja, Monday

Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN) and Chairman of the National Judicial Council (NJC), Justice Ibrahim Tanko Muhammad is expected to formally meet the six Chief Judges  who were summoned to Abuja over conflicting court orders that emanated from their states.

The meeting billed to hold, Monday, in Abuja.

Already, the CJN has reportedly demanded to see the records of proceedings in all the suits from which conflicting ex parte orders emanated.

The six summoned Chief Judges are those from Rivers, Kebbi, Cross Rivers, Anambra, Jigawa and Imo states.

They will meet the CJN over the controversial conflicting orders delivered in their various States.

There are indications that the Chief Judge of the Delta State High Court, has also been invited to join the other six Chief Judges to meet with the CJN.

The unprecedented move is to reset the anti-corruption efforts of Justice Tanko’s leadership and entrench a new culture of accountability in the judicial system.

Justice Muhammad is also likely to meet with the leadership of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) in the course of the week, over the matter.

A part of summons from the CJN Mohammed to the affected chief judges last week read: “My attention has been drawn to media reports to the effect that some Courts of coordinate jurisdiction were granting conflicting ex-parte orders on the same subject matter.

“It has become expedient for me to invite you for a detailed briefing on the development.

“This is even more compelling having regard to earlier NJC Warning to judicial officers on the need to be circumspect in granting ex-parte applications.”

It would be recalled that, last month the National Commissioner and Chairman, Information and Voter Education Committee, of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Barrister Festus Okoye, said politicians and their political parties are now engaged in ‘forum shopping,’ ahead of the Anambra State Governorship election slated for November 6, this year.

Speaking on Channels TV, Okoye said politicians in the state are now approaching various courts in the country seeking for favourable judgements ahead of the governorship poll in Anambra State.

Reacting to the plethora of court suits which had hamstringed his Commission from effectively listing candidates of political parties for the elections in the state, Okoye expressed fears over the situation as, according to him, ‘it is going to have far-reaching consequences on our electoral process.’

“What is going on is what in legal parlance, we call ‘forum shopping’; people who are looking for a place where they can get a favourable decision.

“For a party primary that took place in Anambra, for instance, some people will go to Bauchi state, some people will go to Jigawa state, some people will go to Imo state and to other places to go and look for a place where they can get a favourable decision.

“It is important for the judiciary to intervene in what is going on. If this spate of multiple and conflicting court orders is carried forward to the 2023 general election, it is going to have far-reaching consequences on our electoral process.”