NJC vs Aregbesola: Osun to reject CJ’s choice

By Soni Daniel, Regional Editor, North

The crisis over the appointment of a new Chief Judge for Osun State appears to be far from over as the State House of Assembly is set to reject the nomination of Justice Bola Ojo, who has already been approved by the National Judicial Council, NJC.

The state lawmakers, it was learnt, are meeting tomorrow to consider the letter sent in by the NJC to Governor Rauf Aregbesola, informing him of the choice of Ojo, as the successor to Olaniyi Ojo, who retired from office last Wednesday.

However, the nomination of Ojo, which is reported to have been confirmed by the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Aloma Mukhtar, early this month, appears to be at variance with that of the governor, which is Justice Joseph Oyewole of the Ikeja High Court.

However, when the list was sent by the JSC to the NJC for confirmation last month, the council turned down the list of nominees from the state, and asked the state to select the most senior judge and represent to it.

In a dramatic twist, the NJC wrote another letter to Aregbesola, informing him of the choice of Bola Ojo as the new CJ for the state.

Apparently not satisfied with the way the NJC went about the choice, the governor was said to have forwarded the NJC’s letter to the State House of Assembly for consideration in line with the extant laws of the state.

A source, who is familiar with the situation, said the lawmakers, who were unhappy with the handling of the matter, would turn down the recommendation, until the council complies with the procedure stipulated for such appointment.

The lawmakers are said to be angered by what they see as an attempt by the NJC to impose a CJ on Osun State contrary to the recommendation of the JSC on the matter.