More than two years after the Nigerian Bar Association proposed stripping the Chief Justice of Nigeria of the statutory chairmanship of the National Judicial Council, the composition and structure of the body remain unchanged.
In April 2024, the NBA submitted recommendations at a national summit on justice sector reforms calling for a fundamental overhaul of the NJC. The association argued that the current arrangement, under which the CJN automatically heads the council, undermines public confidence in its ability to handle judicial misconduct.
The NBA proposed a new membership structure: six judicial officers appointed by the CJN, six lawyers nominated by the NBA’s National Executive Council (including the NBA president), and six non-lawyers appointed by the president subject to Senate confirmation. Chairmanship would rotate among the three groups. The association also recommended the creation of professional court administrators to handle procurement, budgeting, renovations and other administrative functions currently performed by heads of court, freeing judges to focus on adjudication.
Dr Babatunde Ajibade, SAN, who chaired the joint planning committee of the summit, said at the time that participants reached a general consensus on the need to reconstitute both the NJC and the Federal Judicial Service Commission. Concern focused on the dual role of the CJN as chairman of both bodies, creating the appearance that the same individual recommends candidates to himself while appointing many of the members.
The NJC was established under Section 153 of the 1999 Constitution to recommend appointments and removals of judicial officers and to oversee discipline and performance evaluation. It replaced the military-era Advisory Judicial Committee. Its current membership includes the CJN as chairman, the next most senior Supreme Court justice, the President of the Court of Appeal, other heads of court, NBA representatives and two non-lawyers.
Critics have long argued that the recruitment process has allowed the appointment of unsuitable candidates, including relatives of serving or retired judges and individuals with political connections, contributing to conflicting judgments and persistent allegations of corruption. The council’s part-time membership, slow handling of petitions and perceived leniency of sanctions have also drawn criticism.
Despite the NBA’s proposals and subsequent public discussion, neither the NJC nor the FJSC has been restructured. President Bola Tinubu’s 2023 manifesto pledged to review the council’s mandate and composition to make it more effective against corruption, malpractice and incompetence, and suggested limiting its role to federal courts. More than three years into his administration, no such changes have been implemented.
The current Chief Justice, Kudirat Kekere-Ekun, has publicly committed to tackling corruption on the bench. After her Senate screening in September 2024, the NJC made public the shortlists of candidates for judicial appointment to allow public scrutiny. In May 2026, following its 111th meeting, the council queried 256 judges over performance issues and suspended two High Court judges for one year without pay for misconduct and breach of the right to fair hearing.
Speaking at the 2025 All Nigerian Judges Conference in November that year, President Tinubu warned that corruption in the judiciary destroys the nation at its core and urged decisive action. Justice Kekere-Ekun acknowledged that some judges had undermined the integrity of the bench and said the situation must change, while cautioning against unsupported blanket allegations.
As of October 2026, the structural reforms proposed by the NBA and discussed at the 2024 summit have not been enacted.
Based on reporting by Ikechukwu Nnochiri
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