24 years after, Nasarawa gets first female Chief Judge, Aisha, as Dikko bows out

A valedictory session in honoured of the outgone Chief Judge of Nasarawa State, Justice Suleiman Umaru Dikko was held today in Lafia, the state capital amidst mammoth crowd.

The event which brought together eminent personalities, high profile jurists from far and near, within and outside the state also witnessed the swearing-in of the new, and the first female Chief Judge of the state, Justice Aisha Aliyu Bashir by Governor Abdullahi Sule.

The court session which held at the new complex of the state high court, also had in attendance women groups, traditional rulers, past Chief Judges of the state, top government officials are among dignitaries at the occasion.

Justice Aisha is expected to resume work on acting capacity as the Chief Judge on the 1 January, 2021, marking another milestone in the history of Nasarawa State judiciary.

The appointment of Aisha Aliyu Bashir is the 5 in series after the creation of Nasarawa State 24 years ago.

Justice Dikko who was born on 31 December, 1955, today clocked 65 years of birth, which coincided with the mandatory retirement of a Judicial officer of a State as enshrined in the Constitutional provisions of Section 291 (2) of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

Speaking at the valedictory Session, Governor Abdullahi Sule, reiterated the effort of his administration to providing purposeful leadership, ensuring separation of power and entrenching the principles of rules of law, as well as the sustenance of good governance for socio-economic development of the State.

According to Governor Sule, “in fulfilment of the constitutional obligation and based on the recommendation of the Nasarawa State Judicial Service Commission in compliance with the provision of section 271 (1), I approved the appointment of Justice Aisha Bashir Aliyu as the Acting Chief Judge of Nasarawa State.”

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He said, the appointment of Justice Aisha was aimed at ensuring sanity and stability in the judiciary as a fundamental institution of society.

“While the process for the confirmation is being pursued with the State House of Assembly, it has become necessary to swear-in the appointee, the most senior High Court Judge, to enable her perform the functions of the Chief Judge of Nasarawa State to avoid a vacuum.

“As you are aware, the judiciary is the repository of the tenets of democracy and the rule of law. Indeed, the judiciary is critical in our development process as it provides the alloy that strengthens the relationships among the organs of Government.

He assured that his administration would continue “to accord priority attention to this important integument to enable it meet its objectives and expectations of the citizenry.”

Sule reminded the acting female Chief Judge that, “as head of the Judicial Arm of Government, you are the symbol of fairness, equity, justice and objectivity which is the hallmark that civilised society yearns for at all times.

He tasked her to bring to bear her wealth of experience in the discharge of the onerous responsibility.

In a remark, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Hassan Lima lamented on how Private Bar in the State are not being considered in the process of appointment for judicial officers, which, according to him, was always characterized by unhealthy bickering and competition aimed at bringing down one another.

“However, as much as I am from the private Bar, I have never personally had a cause to discriminate or put any distinction against the esteem members of the profession who are of the Public Bar, either those from the Bench or from the State Ministry of Justice or other related Public Offices”.

The new female acting Chief Judge, Justice Aisha Bashir said that the Chief Judge would have done better if the State judiciary was properly funded.

He urged the State Government under the leadership of Governor Abdullahi Sule to look into the lingering issues of non implementation of promotion, annual increments and half salaries of some judiciary workers in the State.

“What was more, salaries were regularly paid and staff enjoyed promotion and annual increment but stop at 2015, unlike others who enjoyed half salaries for months and not to talk of promotion and annual increments”.

The outgone Chief Judge, Justice Suleiman Umaru Dikko said, it was really heart warming working on the capacity of Chief Judge and thank judicial staff for the support accorded him.