5th February 2026, NewsOrient, Law And Society, Governance And Development, News
By NewsOrient Law Desk. Photo Credit: TheNigerianLawyer

Some legal cobwebs that have stalled appointment of new judges in Abia State since 2023 was untied on Wednesday, February 4 2026 by the Court of Appeal sitting in Owerri.

This is as Justice Ntong Francis Ntong, JCA, delivering the lead judgment of the matter, Appeal No: CA/OW/300M/2024; Suit No: NICN/OW/05/2024, between Mr E. E. Egwulonu, Nkem (Joy) Ijeoma Oluchi (for herself and as Representing the 2022 Shortlisted candidates) as Applicants/Appellants and Attorney General of Abia State, the Abia State Judicial Service Commission (Excluding the Claimant) and National Judicial Commission as Respondents/Respondents, dismissed the Applicants’ Applications with three million naira costs and held that the Respondents can now proceed with the process of appointing new judges.

In the Appeal before their Lordships: Oyebisi F. Omoleye (Presiding Justice of Court of Appeal), Mohammed Lawal Abubakar, JCA and Ntong Festus Ntong JCA, the Applicants/Appellants sought to challenge the ruling of the National Industrial Court of Nigeria to the effect that the court has jurisdiction to determine the issue of appointment of judicial officers.

Expressing gratitude to the Honourable Court for, as he puts it, “liberating Abia State from the shackles of oppression,” the Attorney General of Abia State, Ikechukwu Uwanna SAN, explained to reporters, after the judgment, what informed the appeal and the implications of the judgement of the Court of Appeal, thus:

“There was a 2022 process for appointment of judges in Abia State. That process was alleged to be riddled with corruption, gratification and all sorts of corrupt practices. And there are pending appeals at the Court of Appeal against that process in view of the facts of allegations of corruption associated with the process.

“Now, what the Judicial Commission in Abia State did was that, pending the determination of the matter around that process, to commence another process in 2024 for appointment of judges because, as we all know, nature abhors vacuum; the state cannot continue to wait for that 2022 list to exculpate itself from corruption allegations. So, the state went on but the persons who were nominated in the 2022 list insisted that they must be made judges before the state can appoint others.

“But the Court of Appeal today said No! It is a parallel line. You can proceed with the 2022 list, but the 2024 list that has no stigma, nobody should stop it; nobody should tamper with the process. This is what the Court of Appeal has affirmed,” he said.

As the Attorney General of Abia State And Commissioner for Justice, Uwanna SAN, stated that: “By this judgment, the Judicial Service Commission in Abia State will now proceed expeditiously with the process of nominating and screening of suitable candidates for recommendation to the National Judicial Council for appointment as judges.”

In it’s lead judgment, the Court of Appeal held that “the extant case bothers on the exercise of the appointment of judicial officer in Abia State. The Applicants technically included the issue of jurisdiction in their grounds of appeal to delay the 2024 exercise of the appointment of judicial officers in Abia State. This is evident in their Notice of Discontinuance earlier filed to suspend litigation and the precious time of the court and litigants…Simply because jurisdiction is very fundamental in any proceeding does not mean it can be raised recklessly or falsely to tactically delay or harass the other party and the court. This cannot be welcomed in our jurisprudence.

“Consequently, from the avalanche of uncontradicted affidavit evidence as contained in the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Respondents’ Counter Affidavits, the Applicants are not desirous to pursue the appeal but to truncate, delay, interrupt and stand down the 2024 appointment exercise of Judicial Officers in Abia State in perpetuity without any justification whatsoever.”

The court held also that “employment or appointment of judicial officers are not judiciable;” that the Applicants are on a frolic of their own.

“Therefore, the grant of this Application will not just be prejudicial to the Respondents alone, but to the entire Abia State people who long for justice.”

In conclusion, the Honourable Court held: “Relying on the Supreme Court of Nigeria authority in C & N. Inv. Ltd Vs. Sterling Bank Plc (Supra), I make bold to hold that the Applicants failed to conjunctively satisfy the conditions or requirements for grant of their Application for enlargement of time to appeal or seek leave to appeal.
“Consequently, the failure of the Applicants to satisfy the twin requirements amount to dismissal of the Application. Accordingly, the Applicants’ Application is hereby dismiss. Cost of N3,000,000.00 (Three million Naira) is hereby awarded against the Applicants and in the favour of the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Respondents at N1,000,000.00 (One million Naira) each.”

As the Attorney General of Abia State, Uwanna SAN, said immediately after the judgement, NewsOrient Law reports that with this judgement, especially with his Lordship’s affirmation that the two lists can be treated as parallel lines, it is expected that new candidates would soon be nominated for recommendation and appointment as judges in Abia State.

~ Published By NewsOrient Network

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