Outgone Justice Tanko Muhammad the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN) left, and his replacement, Justice Olukayode Ariwoola
Nigerians woke up Monday morning to the news of the immediate resignation of Justice Tanko Muhammad the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN). It was reported that he resigned because of ill-health. The CJN had been in a running battle with brother judges who recently wrote a protest letter, which went public accusing Justice Tanko Muhammad of all manners of maladministration at the apex court.
Already, President Muhammadu Buhari has sworn in Justice Olukayode Ariwoola on Monday as Acting Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN) following the sudden resignation of Justice Tanko Muhammad. Justice Olukayode Ariwoola, who is the next in line in the hierarchy of the Supreme Court, would become the 18th Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), when his sworn-in in acting capacity by President Muhammadu Buhari is eventually ratified by the Senate.
Ariwoola, who would be 68 years by August this year, if confirmed as substantive CJN by the Senate, would be saddled with the responsibility of appointing judges and justices that would handle election petitions that would likely arise from the forthcoming 2023 general election. He would also preside over the presidential election petition in the event of any.
Justice Ariwoola was one of the seven justices of the Supreme Court that decided the 2019 presidential election petition that affirmed the election of Buhari as President for a second term. Born on August 22, 1954, Ariwoola who hails from Oyo State has been on the bench of the apex court for nearly 11 years, having been appointed on November 22, 2011. Currently, he is a member of the Nigerian Bar Association, the International Bar Association, and the Nigerian Body of Benchers. Ariwoola is a 1980 law graduate of the University of Ife (now Obafemi Awolowo University), Ile Ife, Osun State.
