The death of Sylvester Ngwuta, a justice of the Supreme
Court of Nigeria, on Sunday means seniority at the nation’s constitutional
court is about to change, an analysis by TheCable has shown.
Mary Ukaego Peter-Odili, who is currently the fourth most
senior of the 20 justices, will find herself as the second-in-command to the
chief justice of Nigeria (CJN), Tanko Muhammad, in just a fortnight.
Why? The current No 2 is
Bode Rhodes-Vivour — but he will bow out of the bench on March 22, 2021
when he clocks 70.
That is just two weeks away.
Ngwuta was the No 3 and was due to retire on March 30, 2021
upon attaining the mandatory retirement age of 70 but has now died, leaving the
position for Peter-Odili.
Rhodes-Vivour’s imminent exit means Peter-Odili — spouse of
former governor of Rivers state and former presidential hopeful, Peter Odili —
will move from No 4 to No 2 faster than expected.
BUT IS SHE NEXT IN LINE FOR CJN?
By tradition, the second most senior justice of the supreme
court is appointed chief justice after the retirement of the incumbent.
Will Peter-Odili become the second female CJN — after Aloma
Mariam Mukhtar — when Muhammad retires?
Not so fast.
Odili, who was appointed a justice of the supreme court on
June 23, 2011, was born on May 12, 1952.
This means she will be due for retirement by May 12, 2022 on
clocking 70.
But Muhammad, who was appointed a supreme court judge in
2006 and sworn in on January 8, 2007, was born on December 31, 1953 — meaning
he is younger than Peter-Odili and will not retire until 2023 when he hits the
70 figure.
For those who dream of another female CJN as the world marks
International Women’s Day today, all hope is not lost.
Kudirat Kekere-Ekun, born on May 7, 1958, will not retire
until 2028 and is due to move to No 5 very soon.
There is also Amina Adamu Augie, but she will be 70 in
September 2023 when Muhammad may still be in his seat.
Uwani Musa Abba Aji is also waiting in the wings as she will
not retire until November 7, 2026.
There is one more female justice, Helen M. Ogunwumiju, who
was inaugurated as a justice of the supreme court in November 2020.
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