The National Judicial Council (NJC) has announced that Maurice Ikpambese, the Chief Judge of Benue State, will remain in office as an investigation into the allegations against him is conducted.
This comes after the Benue State House of Assembly recommended his suspension over accusations of abuse of office and misconduct.
On Tuesday, the House of Assembly passed a resolution calling for Ikpambese’s suspension following a letter from Governor Hyacinth Alia.
The letter, presented by Saater Tiseer, the House Majority Leader, outlined five serious allegations against the Chief Judge. These included abuse of office for allegedly issuing a directive to overturn a Benue state electoral law passed by the assembly and signed by the governor.
Other accusations involved financial mismanagement and misappropriation of the judiciary’s budget, collusion with politicians for favorable judicial outcomes, and even involvement in inciting industrial actions against the state executive.
The resolution for suspension was backed by 23 out of 31 lawmakers in the state assembly.
In response to the developments, Kemi Ogedengbe, the NJC’s Deputy Director of Information, confirmed on Wednesday that the council had received the petition against Ikpambese. Ogedengbe emphasized that the Constitution provides clear guidelines on the appointment and discipline of judicial officers, ensuring a fair process as the investigation proceeds.
“Unfortunate as this development is, council wishes to reiterate that there are clear and unambiguous provisions of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 on discipline and appointment of Judicial officers vested in the council, which clearly are not adhered to in the instant case.
“Although, the Council had this morning received a petition against Hon. Justice Maurice Ikpambese, that petition is yet to be investigated in line with Council’s investigation procedure and the principles of fair hearing.
“As far as Council is therefore concerned, until the complaint is investigated and deliberated upon by it, Hon. Justice Maurice Ikpambese remains the Chief Judge of Benue State.”
