Civil Society uncovers a can of worms in Imo State Judiciary as eighteen Judges are fingered in age falsification and unprecedented abuse of code of conduct.
A Coalition of Civil Society Groups; the Civil Society Engagement Platform CSEP has uncovered what it termed; ‘Mother of all corruption in the judiciary’.
In a document made available to news men in Abuja on Thursday, April 10, 2025 by the Executive Secretary of the Coalition; Comrade Onyebuchi Emmanuel, CSEP detailed eye popping allegations against eighteen judges of Imo State Judiciary.
Incidentally, the three most senior Judges in Imo State Judiciary are among the culprits and this must have necessitated the appointment of the fourth most senior Judge as acting Chief Judge of the State.
In a petition to the National Judicial Council NJC, CSEP alleged that these Judges have falsified their ages at various times so as to secure appointment into the judiciary and to gain undue advantage.
The National Judicial Council (NJC) has dealt with numerous cases involving age falsification by judges to stay on. For instance, in September 2016, the council announced the compulsory retirement of two of the High Court judges of Niger State over age falsification.
Also, in April 2020, the NJC sacked a judge of the Imo State High Court following the falsification of date of birth from 1950 to 1958. The council said findings showed that he was supposed to have retired in November 2015 when he clocked the mandatory retirement age of 65 years.
The council also sacked a judge of the Yobe State High Court for falsifying his age on two occasions. He was said to have declared February 1, 1955, and later August 27, 1955. He later declared December 30, 1959. He was supposed to retire on February 1, 2020, by virtue of his declared date of birth of February 1, 1955.
Similarly, the council found an Osun State High Court judge to have falsified his date of birth from September 3, 1955, to Sept 1957.
In all the cases, the NJC advised the state governments to deduct from the gratuity of the judges all salaries received in the period they ought not to be in service and remitted to the public purse.
Meanwhile, it has been suggested that the perquisites or benefits of office may be the reason for the attitude of judges who falsify their age to stay in the job. By Nigerian standards, the job of the judicial officer is one of the best remunerated jobs around.
Apart from salaries, judges are entitled to yearly medical trips abroad, cars, houses, furniture, security, recreation, office and domestic aides among other freebies of office.
Reacting to age falsification among judges, a constitutional lawyer and presidential adviser on anti-corruption, Prof. Itse Sagay (SAN), said any judge involved in age fraud lacked integrity and honour.
“He is a man whose judgment can be purchased because he has no values and no ethics,” he said.
For Dayo Akinlaja (SAN), the issue of age falsification in public service is an integrity problem.
“No citizen should be found doing this, let alone a judicial officer. A judge must be honest and live above board but when a judicial officer is now involved in something like that you can be sure it speaks volumes,” he said.
