Date Published: 02/09/11

Leave Salami alone, NJC tells Katsina-Alu

The controversy over whether or not to “promote” Nigeria’s President of the Court of Appeal Justice Ayo Salami to the Supreme Court has been laid to rest.

Today, the National Judicial Commission (NJC) – Nigeria’s highest judicial authority - decided at its meeting in Abuja that the status quo ante should remain. The NJC is the highest judicial authority in Nigeria. The Appeal Court is Nigeria’s appellate court from where cases move to the Supreme Court. It is also the court, for now, with the final authority on election petition cases.

Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN) Justice Alloysius Katsina-Alu had proposed to move Justice Salami from his post to the apex court which he rejected.

Salami even went to court to prevent the action and in his statement of claims alleged that the CJN wanted to move him because he (Salami) declined to do his bidding in respect of the Sokoto State election petition.