Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) on Monday alerted of rising level of corruption among judges in the country and then charged the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Aloysius Katsina-Alu, to take allegations of high profile corruption in the judiciary serious. 

Speaking at a valedictory session at the Supreme Court in honour of Justice Ikechi Ogbuagu who retired from the apex court on September 13, President of the NBA, Joseph Daudu, said the jurisdiction just conferred on Court of Appeal as the court of first instance for governorship election petitions has further brought the issue of corruption in the judiciary to the fore. 

According to him, “When eminent jurists such as the retired Hon. Kayode Esho JSC, Hon Akanbi PCA and many others charge that the judiciary is getting irredeemably corrupt, such claims ought to be taken very serious.” 

The NBA boss said if politicians could influence electoral officers to alter election results, nothing would stop them from buying over judges and justices. 

He noted that the clamour to make the Supreme Court the final authority in electoral disputes was based on the allegation that corruption was widespread in the Court of Appeal. 

“One point is however clear; if the warning signals raised on the corruption is not heeded, jurisdiction may one day be taken away from regular courts on election matters as the politicians would always make public facts which others think were concluded in secret. 

“Consequently, everybody hears about the bloated sum that have been given to judicial officers so that the desires of elective office seekers can be satisfied,” he added. 

While agreeing with the CJN on the need to increase the number of justices of the Supreme Court from the present 17 to 21 to cater for increasing workload of the court, Daudu, however, suggested that such appointments be extended to brilliant lawyers in private practice. 

In his valedictory speech, Justice Ogbuagu spoke against raising the retirement age of justices of the appellate courts (Appeal Court and Supreme Court) to 80 years.