The Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Mahmud Mohammed, has pledged to ensure the enthronement of an independent and efficient judiciary before the end of his tenure, promising to build on the structures left behind by his predecessor, in achieving his set objectives.
Mohammed, spoke on Sunday in Abuja at a dinner party organised in his honour by Justice Umaru Abdullahi, a former president of the Court of Appeal.
He said, as somebody who has been a part of the highest level of the nation’s judiciary for a decade, he understands its workings and its challenges, and willing to ensure a functional judiciary that meets the people’s needs, pointing out that with the support of the
good minds in the National Judicial Council (NJC), he would build on the structure left by his immediate predecessor in achieving his set objectives.
Justice Mohammed recalled his past working relationship with Justice Abudullahi, describing him as his mentor, whose tutelage has guided his career path. He also described Justice Abdullahi as a man of unquestionable integrity, who is guided only by his conscience. “Throughout our years together, particularly during the military, he was an inspiration to me. I learnt a lot from him. He is a person whose integrity cannot be questioned.
“During the military era, when all the courts were subjected to a lot of pressure, sometimes, Justice Umaru Abdullahi would look an official in the face and say: ‘look you cannot interfere with our judicial works, keep off.’ That is the kind of person he is.
“That is how I learnt to also be upright in the discharge of my responsibilities as a judicial officer. I have stayed a long time in
the system. I will build on the structure left by my predecessor to ensure smooth running of the Nigerian Judiciary.
A former schoolmate of the CJN, Justice John Fabiyi of the Supreme Court and Justice Abdullahi expressed confidence in the CJN’s ability to deliver on his promises in view of what they know of him.
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