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SANs List Expectations As S’Court Justices Rise To 21
The Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Olukayode Ariwoola, on Monday, swore in 11 new Justices of the Supreme Court, bringing the number of Justices on the apex court bench to 21.
The development was hailed by Senior Advocates of Nigeria, who expressed the hope that it would translate to the clearing of the huge backlog of cases at the Supreme Court.
The swearing-in of the 11 Justices comes over two months after they were screened and confirmed by the Senate, acting on the recommendation of President Bola Tinubu.
Before now the number of Justices on the Supreme Court bench went down to an all-time low of 10, as opposed to 21 recommended by the Constitution.
The appointment of an additional 11 Justices, giving the Supreme Court its full complement of Justices, followed agitations and calls from several quarters on the declining manpower at the apex court.
At the swearing-in, which took place at the Main Courtroom of the Supreme Court in Abuja on Monday, the CJN noted that the 11 new Justices were joining the apex court bench “at a time when the rank had been grossly depleted to an all-time low of 10 Justices for a number of reasons, mainly retirement, and deaths.”
“The inability of the court to meet up the statutory full compliment of 21 Justices had lingered on for too long,” the CJN remarked.
Speaking with The PUNCH, a former Attorney General of Abia State, Chief Awa Kalu (SAN), said with the Supreme Court now having its full complement of Justices, “we expect them to crack down on the backlog of cases in that court. That is the expectation of everybody, and it is a legitimate expectation.”
Similarly, human rights lawyer, Mr Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa (SAN), said, “It is commendable that we have 21 Justices, but I believe it goes just beyond numbers.”
Adegboruwa said the appointment of the 21 Justices must be complemented with the provision of necessary equipment that would aid justice delivery at the apex court.
He said, “It’s important that there is a paradigm shift that will focus on equipping the Justices with the needed infrastructure and personnel to perform.
“Then limit the number of interlocutory appeals that go to the Supreme Court so that it can properly focus on policy decisions that will give a guideline on serious legal matters.
“Then the quality of the judgment. To avoid matters in which we have conflicting judgments, there’s a need for the Supreme Court to sit down and to exert its previous decisions with the purpose of harmonising seemingly contradictory views that have been expressed by the apex court.”
Meanwhile, the CJN, at the swearing-in of the Justices, charged them to brace up for the work ahead and to be prepared to face criticisms from the public.
He said they must discharge their duty in fairness and uprightness, knowing that they were representatives of God on earth.
Justice Ariwoola said, “See yourselves as the representatives of God on earth because any judgment given at this level can only be overturned in heaven.
“There is no way you can please human beings, especially litigants. The easiest way to fail in life is by trying to please everyone. The only deity you can fear is the Almighty God. Once your judgment is in consonance with what God expects from you, and is also in accordance with the Constitution, you should consider yourself the happiest and freest person on earth.”
The CJN also cautioned the Justices against allowing their ambition to cloud their sense of judgment.
“Your moral uprightness, integrity, and respect for the constitution and other extant laws in operation must be unwavering and unassailable,” he added.
The new Supreme Court Justices are Justices
Jummai Sankey, Chidiebere Uwa, Chioma Nwosu-Iheme, Haruna Simon Tsammani, Moore Adumein, Obande Ogbuinya, and Stephen Adah.
Others are Habeeb Abiru, Jamilu Tukur, Abubakar Umar, and Mohammed Idris.
…call for suspension of digital unit, cancellation of exams over widespread disruptions
By Gloria Ikibah
Lawmakers representing the South East in the House of Representatives have called for the immediate step-down of the Registrar of Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board’s (JAMB), Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, citing severe lapses in the recent administration of the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME).
The caucus, under the leadership of Rep. Igariwey Enwo, in a statement issued on Monday in Abuja, expressed outrage over what they termed a systemic breakdown that affected nearly 380,000 candidates, many of whom must now retake the test.
The lawmakers noted that the five South Eastern states were among the hardest hit.
The caucus further criticised the handling of the issue, pointing to inadequate public communication, exam rescheduling that clashed with WAEC timetables, and the short notice provided to affected students.
The lawmakersemphasised that the mishandling has placed avoidable stress on students and their families.
By Francesca Hangeior
The head of the World Health Organization on Monday urged countries to adopt this week the Pandemic Agreement, aimed at preventing a repeat of the Covid-19 crisis.
WHO member states are holding their annual World Health Assembly, a gathering of the UN health agency’s decision-making body.
“At this assembly, member states will consider, and hopefully adopt, the WHO Pandemic Agreement,” WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in his opening address to the gathering in Geneva.
“This is truly a historic moment.”
After more than three years of negotiations, the text of the agreement was finalised by consensus last month.
The United States pulled out of the talks, following US President Donald Trump’s decision to trigger the country’s one-year withdrawal process to leave the WHO.
“Even in the middle of crisis, and in the face of significant opposition, you worked tirelessly, you never gave up, and you reached your goal,” said Tedros.
The hard-fought consensus spurred “joy, triumph, relief, exhaustion,” he said.
“I look forward to your adoption of the agreement.”
The agreement on pandemic prevention, preparedness and response is expected to be adopted by the assembly on Tuesday.
It aims to better detect and combat pandemics by focusing on greater international coordination and surveillance, and more equitable access to vaccines and treatments.
The negotiations grew tense amid disagreements between wealthy and developing countries, with the latter feeling cut off from access to vaccines during the Covid-19 pandemic.
The agreement faced opposition from those who thought it would encroach on state sovereignty.
Countries have until May 2026 to thrash out the details of the agreement’s Pathogen Access and Benefit-Sharing mechanism.
The PABS mechanism deals with sharing access to pathogens with pandemic potential, and the sharing of benefits derived from them: vaccines, tests and treatments.
Once the PABS system is finalised, the agreement can then be ratified. Sixty ratifications are required for the treaty to enter into force.
By Francesca Hangeior
At least one person has died while 61 others were said to have been rescued after an overloaded migrant boat disintegrated in the English Channel during an attempted crossing overnight, according to French maritime authorities, Sky News reported on Monday.
The Maritime Prefect of the Channel and the North Sea confirmed the vessel had collapsed in the water, prompting a major rescue operation involving both French and British emergency services.
Among the rescued were a mother and her child, both suffering from hypothermia. They were airlifted to the hospital by helicopter. The rest of the survivors were transferred to the port of Boulogne-sur-Mer, south of Calais.
The French rescue tug Abeille Normandie launched three speedboats to retrieve 50 people from the water.
An additional 11 were rescued by British crews—two by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution and nine by the UK Border Force vessel Ranger. All were eventually brought aboard the French tug.
A French Navy helicopter later spotted an unconscious person in the sea. The individual was retrieved by the RNLI and taken to the Abeille Normandie, where they were declared dead by the medical team onboard.
The United Kingdom government confirmed the fatality and expressed condolences. “We can confirm there has been a tragic incident in the Channel involving a small boat in French waters, which has resulted in the loss of one life.
“This latest tragedy underlines the terrible dangers of small boat crossings, and we continue to do everything we can to prevent callous criminals exploiting vulnerable people. Our thoughts are with those affected,” a spokesperson said, adding that efforts to prevent human smuggling continue.
The incident occurred amid a surge in Channel crossings. Over 12,000 people have arrived in the UK by small boats this year, including more than 1,100 in the past week alone.
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer recently vowed to dismantle smuggling networks, while Prime Minister Rishi Sunak warned of growing immigration pressures and pledged to reduce net migration by 2029.
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