Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Olukayode Ariwoola, has cautioned Justices of the Court of Appeal against receiving juicy and irresistible gifts, often intended to dent their reputation and integrity.
The CJN, who gave the charge yesterday in Abuja, while swearing-in nine new Justices appointed to the Court of Appeal Bench, urged the newly appointed Justices to endeavour to always hold their heads high by auditing their conduct regularly in order not to fall on the wrong side of the law.
He said that gifts and wealth that are not worked for; which are, by extension, undeserving and are always destructive and calamitous, and charged the Appeal Court Justices to conduct their affairs within the ambit of the law and the oath of office administered on them.
According to the CJN, several novel crimes are being committed in the country that now make litigations go on a steady rise, adding also that, political cases, especially, are taking a monumental toll on the courts dockets. He charged the Justices to fasten their belt and roll up their sleeves to face the challenges head-on.
The newly appointed Justices of the Court of Appeal are: Hannatu Azumi Laja-Balogun, from Kaduna State, Binta Fatima Zubairu from Kaduna State, Peter Chudi Obiora, from Anambra State, Okon Efreti Abang from Akwa Ibom State, Asmau Musa Mainoma, from Federal Capital Territory; Lateef Adebayo Ganiyu, from Oyo State; Jane Esienanwan Iyang, from Cross River State; Hadiza Rabiu Shagari, from Sokoto State, and Paul Ahmed Bassi, from Borno State.
