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Appointment of Judges: FCT Chief Judge schedules exam for CJN’s daughter, others, against protest

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Chief Justice Husseini Baba-Yusuf has scheduled a recruitment examination for new judges on the FCT High Court in defiance of a parliamentary resolution that said he should pause the exercise until outstanding questions over applicable statutes have been settled.

Peoples Gazette learnt from judiciary sources that Mr Baba-Yusuf has asked Oluwakemi Ariwoola, daughter of the chief justice of Nigeria, and several others to attend a written test for promotion to the FCT High Court from their current positions as magistrates on Saturday.

The Government Secondary School, Maitama, was chosen as the venue, according to the notification letter sent out for the February 24 examination.

Mr Baba-Yusuf’s daughter, Maryam, was also selected to be on the court. He has also accepted Munira Ibrahim Tanko, a junior magistrate and daughter of erstwhile Chief Justice Ibrahim Tanko Muhammad, as a candidate from Bauchi.

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The details emerged over a week after lawmakers protested after The Gazette’s story and queried Mr Baba-Yusuf’s decision to appoint 12 new judges to fill open positions on the 70-member high court that adjudicates issues across the Nigerian capital.

The motion moved by Enwo Igariwey was overwhelmingly adopted in a voice vote by Speaker Tajudeen Abbas, who subsequently referred it to the House Committee on FCT Judiciary.

Mr Igariwey’s state, Ebonyi, was among the four states, alongside Imo, Abia and Bayelsa, The Gazette reported were left out of judicial appointments in the FCT High Court led by Mr Baba-Yusuf. Legal expert Chidi Odinkalu observed in his latest column that the controversial appointments undermined protests over poor pay in the judiciary.

The Gazette found that recruiting the children of judiciary leaders also necessarily involved stunting the career progression of other magistrates from everyday households in at least four states, our findings showed. It was unclear why Messrs Ariwoola and Baba-Yusuf prioritised their daughters as judges from Oyo and Kogi, which, respectively, already had two judges on the FCT High Court, when Abia, Imo, Bayelsa and Ebonyi each has no single judge on the court and the Nigerian federal character policy codified in Chapter Two of the Constitution required staffing the 70-person bench equitably among citizens from the 36 states and the capital Abuja.

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“The fact that the underlying philosophy of the Federal Character Commission principle is to provide equality of access in public service representations, curb dominance by one or few sections of the country, promote inclusiveness and national unity,” Mr Igariwey said. “Violation of this principle of our Constitution may not only be destabilising but could open the floodgates to litigation.”

The Gazette heard that Mr Baba-Yusuf did not update the list to include Ebonyi and other states that were left out as of Thursday night. It was not immediately clear how the parliament would respond to the chief judge’s defiance, but lawmakers argued they had the power to force the court to comply with existing laws governing the recruitment of judges across the nation’s capital.

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Oyebanji names government buildings after Fayose, Fayemi, Oni

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Ekiti State Governor, Biodun Oyebanji, has approved the naming of newly completed government buildings after three former governors of the state in recognition of their contributions to its development.

The former governors are Chief Ayodele Fayose, Dr. Kayode Fayemi and Engr. Segun Oni. They are also expected to commission the facilities named in their honour.

The announcement was contained in a statement issued on Tuesday by the Governor’s Special Adviser on Media, Yinka Oyebode.

According to the statement, two of the buildings, named after Fayemi and Fayose, will be commissioned on July 31 and August 3, 2026, respectively.

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It added that another building named after Segun Oni is at an advanced stage of completion and is scheduled for commissioning in October.

The statement recalled that in October 2024, Governor Oyebanji named the remodelled Presidential Lodge after the state’s first civilian governor, Otunba Niyi Adebayo, who later commissioned the facility during activities marking the administration’s second anniversary.

It further stated that Fayemi, Fayose and Oni will attend the commissioning ceremonies as special guests of honour and officially inaugurate the buildings named after them.

According to the statement, the commissioning of the projects marks the beginning of another phase of project inaugurations by the Oyebanji administration as it concludes its first term.

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The government said the initiative reflects the administration’s commitment to completing ongoing projects and making them available for public use in line with its Shared Prosperity Agenda.

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Tinubu Meets New NBA Chair, Badejo-Okusanya

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President Bola Tinubu on Tuesday received the President-elect of the Nigerian Bar Association, NBA, Mrs Oyinkansola Badejo-Okusanya, SAN, at the Presidential Villa in Abuja.

Badejo-Okusanya was accompanied to the meeting by some senior lawyers and other lawyers who were on her campaign team.

Recall that Badejo-Okusanya has been elected the 33rd President of the NBA.

She secured a total of 12,317 votes, representing 47.18 per cent of the total votes cast in Saturday’s NBA national election.

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The first female NBA president defeated her closest challengers, Lateef Akangbe, SAN, who garnered 7,934 votes, and Olumuyiwa Akinboro, SAN, who polled 5,855 votes.

Tinubu had congratulated her on her election as the first elected female President of the NBA, describing her victory as a milestone for the legal profession and a triumph for merit, excellence and gender inclusion.

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Osun Poll: APC Heading for Crushing Defeat, Imole Campaign Council Fires Back at National Chairman

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By Gloria Ikibah

The Imole Campaign Council (TICC) has dismissed claims by the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Prof. Nentawe Yilwatda, that the party’s array of governors, National Assembly members and other political heavyweights would guarantee victory in the August 15, 2026 Osun State governorship election.

Reacting to remarks likening the APC’s political strength to a trailer against a “Keke Napep”, the council described the analogy as a display of political arrogance and evidence that the ruling party had misread the mood of Osun voters.

In a statement signed by the Chairman of its Media and Publicity Committee, Rep. Bamidele Salam, the council argued that elections are determined by the electorate rather than by the number of influential politicians a party can mobilise.

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According to the statement, “The people of Osun State are not waiting for political heavyweights from outside the state to decide their future, the electorate are capable of making their own independent choice based on the performance of the government in power.

“The APC National Chairman may have assembled what he calls a political trailer, but he should understand that the people of Osun State are not political cargo to be moved around by outsiders. They are the owners of the mandate, and they alone will determine who governs them.”

The council maintained that the forthcoming governorship election would be decided by the performance of the incumbent administration rather than political rhetoric.

“The August 15 election will not be a contest between a trailer and a Keke Napep. It will be a contest between a performing Governor who has earned the confidence of his people and an APC candidate who is struggling to gain acceptance among the electorate.

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“The reality on the ground is that Governor Ademola Adeleke enjoys tremendous goodwill among the people of Osun State because of the visible achievements of his administration. His record in road infrastructure, healthcare, education, workers’ welfare, water supply, agriculture, youth empowerment and other critical sectors speaks directly to the people”, he said.

The campaign council also questioned the popularity of the APC governorship candidate, Munirudeen Bola Oyebamiji, arguing that the party’s dependence on external political figures reflected an inability to build grassroots support within the state.

The council further challenged the APC to focus on presenting policies and programmes instead of relying on political symbolism.

“The APC governorship candidate, Munirudeen Bola Oyebamiji is obviously weak and unpopular, the decision of the APC to rely heavily on political figures from outside Osun is an indication of its candidate’s inability to independently mobilise the people.

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“Rather than boasting about the number of governors and National Assembly members being deployed to Osun, the APC should tell the people what its candidate has to offer. The people are interested in issues, performance and credible leadership, not political metaphors”, he said.

The Imole Campaign Council urged the opposition party to respect the intelligence of Osun voters by running an issue-based campaign and offering what it described as credible alternatives ahead of the governorship election.

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