CJN And The Jombo-Ofo Saga

In a clime where well-meaning individuals and proactive civil society institutions are working tirelessly towards tapping from the rich reservoire of motherly attributes in qualified women for nation-building, it is indeed strange that the swearing-in of a female Appeal Court Judge nominee should be elevated to a bitter national debate.

Even more unfortunate is the fact that the avoidable detraction is an off-shoot of time-rejected argument of indigeneship and the very often trampled rights of the woman after marriage.

In exercise of his powers under section 238 (2) of the 1999 Nigerian Constitution, President Goodluck Jonathan recently appointed 12 High Court Judges, among them Honourable Justice Ifeoma Jombo-Ofo, as Justices of the Court of Appeal. The appointments followed recommendation forwarded to him by the National Judicial Council (NJC) presided over by the Honourable Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Aloma Mukthar.

Surprisingly, while performing the ceremonial swearing-in of the nominees, as required by law, the same CJN, Justice Mukthar suspended that of Justice Jombo-Ofo on grounds of a petition against her nomination. That petition, according to media reports, stemmed from the familiar primordial debate over where a married woman’s rights of inheritance truly lie.

The petitioners we understood, insist that Justice (Mrs) Ofo’s state of origin, which appears to be a preresiquite for appointment into such high judicial office is Anambra State, while she is an Abia indigene by marriage. That meant that by the singular fact of her marriage alone, Justice Ofo automatically becomes an Abian, since her husband and herself by the oath of marriage have become one and citizens of Abia State.

Abia State Governor, Theodore Orji made the same clarification when he defended Hon. Justice Jombo-Ofo’s nomination as a bonafide Abia indigene by marriage. Such clarification, we think ought to have been enough for the CJN to move ahead with the swearing-in of the Hon. Justice Ofo as Justice of  the Appeal Court of Nigeria.

The continued refusal of the CJN to do so, The Tide believes contravenes the laws of marriage in Nigeria and undermines the nominee’s rights to be protected against superflous  considerations bordering on sex, colour, religion and indeed tribal affiliation.

While not condemning the CJN for the initial caution exercised in halting the swearing-in, principally to investigate the merit and demerit of the protest, we think that the clarification by the Abia State governor is enough defence against any fears of the CJN never to act against the law.

Yes, the law specifies that such appointees must represent areas that are their states of origin, but we do think that, so mundane, such legal enactments might not have anticipated the value of marriage as a necessary variable in the likely shift of states of origin.

This is why The Tide believes that swearing-in Hon. Justice Jombo-Ofo would not be contravening the law, particularly since the affected state has re-affirmed her as an indigene by marriage, thus, a legal shift of state of origin from Anambra to Abia. Besides, Jombo-Ofo has been an ample part of the judiciary of Abia State without any prior protest.

This is why The Tide enjoins the CJN to move on with the swearing-in of Justice Jombo-Ofo without any further delay. Such exercise of the CJN’s right should not and would not be contravening any existing law as the facts of Mrs Jombo-Ofo’s origin are no longer ambiguous.

These are not times to allow any and every single issue to heat-up a system, especially for all the wrong reasons. A situation whereby a woman loses her rights of inheritance in her father’s home on account of marriage and, suffers same fate in her husband’s home is not only inhuman, unjust and unfair, but also smacks of avoidable discrimination of a citizen on grounds of sex.

Unless there is more to the suspension of Jombo-Ofo’s-swearing-in that the judiciary wants the public to know, there is not yet a justifiable reason to prevent Justice Jombo-Ofo from becoming  an Appeal Court Judge, representing Abia State, her new place of origin by marriage.

That is why The Tide joins the National Assembly and other well-meaning Nigerians to demand that Justice Jombo-Ofo be sworn-in as Appeal Court Judge, without further delay. Any one unhappy with that should then try the honourable path of subjecting such protest to test before a court of competent jurisdiction, and not merely hide in the dark to cause this magnitude of embarrassment to an otherwise honourable institution.