A Supreme Court judge, Justice Mary Peter-Odili, yesterday, retired after attaining the retirement age of 70.
Speaking at the valedictory court session held in her honour, Mrs Peter-Odili lamented the spate of violent crimes in Nigeria, which she attributed to youth unemployment.
At the event, which held at the Supreme Court in Abuja, the retiring apex court justice, who is the wife of a former Rivers State Governor, Dr Peter Odili, warned that the “urgency of what we are all faced with right now calls for necessity in tackling them.
“The massive unemployment of tertiary institution graduates is a tip of the icebergs.
“The millions of idle youth is not unrelated to the insecurity on the ground,” she said.
She said the current strike action by public universities’ lecturers, which has lasted over three months, has compounded youth restiveness.
“The situation is not helped by the perennial strikes which leave students idling away.”
In tackling the problem, Mrs Peter-Odili suggested that “the Head of State should take on the garb of minister of youth, employment and social welfare.”
Drawing from her experience as a former first lady in Rivers State, Mrs Peter-Odili said with the president assuming the role of employment minister, he would direct “the implementation of what is put in place without middlemen” hijacking the process.
She advised state governors to adopt same strategies in dealing with youth unemployment.
Mrs Peter-Odili advocated the urgent “restructuring” of Nigeria.
“My humble view is that the issue (of restructuring) should be given an immediate attention.”
Recalling her over four-decade judicial career, she thanked her husband, Dr Peter Odili, and colleagues for their support.
In his remarks, the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Tanko Muhammad, poured encomium on Mrs Peter-Odili for her “irrepressible voice in the temple of justice.”
Muhammad described the retiring jurist as the “epitome of jurisprudential finesse.
“We are honouring an amiable lady of alluring qualities and excellence that transcend the legal profession,” he said.
The CJN noted that Mrs Peter-Odili “offered the best of her intellect to the advancement of the legal profession through her several years of inimitable adjudications at different levels of courts in Nigeria.
“She is a specimen of hard work, industry, discipline and high moral rectitude,” Muhammad said.
Similarly, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Wole Olanipekun, praised the retiring justice for her contribution to Nigeria’s judicial system.
But, Olanipekun, who spoke on behalf of the Body of Senior Advocates of Nigeria, said the “legal profession today faces a lot of problems.
“Political cases are responsible for the tagging of Judiciary as ‘supermarket.’”
He pointed out that the Supreme Court cannot be “insular.
“Where the Supreme Court gives a judgement in error, it should reverse itself,” adding that “forum-shopping” where lawyers shop for favourable court decisions “has to be addressed.”
On his part, the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, SAN, represented by the Permanent Secretary in the ministry, Beatrice Jedy-Agba, noted that Mrs Peter-Odili followed the path of honour during her time as justice on the bench of the Supreme Court.
He, however, called on the judiciary to embrace technological innovation to ensure a more effective and efficient justice delivery system.
Mrs Peter-Odili bowed out of service after attaining the 70 years mandatory retirement age.
She was born on May 12, 1952, to the royal family of Bernard Nzenwa in a highly commercially inclined community of Amudi Obizi, Ezinihitte-Mbaise Local Government Area of Imo State.
She made headlines last October after 15 suspected invaders, including a suspected police officer, invaded her house to purportedly execute a search warrant.
The suspects are currently standing trial at the Federal High Court in Abuja.
Justice Mary Ukaego Odili was appointed an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of Nigeria (JSC) by President Goodluck Jonathan and was administered the oath of office by Chief Justice Katsina-Alu on 23 June 2011.
Prior to becoming SCN justice, she held numerous important offices, including Judge, High Court of Rivers State (1992–2004), Justice, Court of Appeal, Abuja Division (2004–2010), and Presiding Justice, Court of Appeal, Kaduna Division (2010–2011).
She served as the First Lady of Rivers State during her husband’s tenure as governor.
Mary Ukaego Nzenwa was born on 12 May 1952 in Amudi Obizi, Ezinihitte-Mbaise Local Government Area of Imo State.
She is the second daughter of Eze Bernard Nzenwa and Ugoeze Bernadette Nzenwa.
Her father, Eze Nzenwa worked as a lawyer in the United Kingdom during 1959 before he was made Secretary of the Nigeria Airways.
Ukaego attended a number of primary schools as a child including St Benedict’s Primary School, Obizi Ezinitte, St Michael’s Primary School, Umuahia, St Agnes Primary School, Maryland and Our Lady of Apostles Primary School, Yaba.
She briefly attended Our Lady of Apostles Secondary School, also in Yaba, Lagos.
Following the outbreak of the civil war in 1967, Ukaego and her parents relocated to the southeast of the country.
There, she continued her education at Owerri Girls High School until her family moved back to Mbaise.
She then attended Mbaise Girls Secondary School and later enrolled at the Queen of the Rosary College in Onitsha.
In 1972, she passed with Grade I (aggregate 6) in the West African School Certificate Examination.
The same year, Ukaego gained admission into the University of Nigeria, Enugu campus where she read law.
In her second year in the university she earned a scholarship for maintaining the second class upper division league with higher scores.
She met Peter Odili, a medical doctor, at a campus party and the two began a romantic relationship. In 1976, she graduated with an LLB (Hons) and was rated the best student of the department of commercial and property law.
Shortly after, she attended the Nigerian Law School and received her B.L. certificate in 1977, before embarking on her youth service in Benin City and Abeokuta. Odili was serving as a House Officer in Benin City at the time.
Ukaego commenced her career in the judiciary as a Magistrate grade III in November 1978. She married Odili in 1979 and gave birth to a daughter, Adaeze.
Ukaego and her family moved to Port Harcourt city where her husband founded his medical centre Pamo Clinics.
Between 1980 and 1988, Ukaego served as Chief Magistrate Grade I, Chairman of the Juvenile Court, President, Marine Board of Inquiry into the 1979 Buguma Boat disaster, Chairman, Constitution Drafting Committee of the University of Nigeria Alumni Associates, Inaugural Chairperson of the International Federal of Women Lawyers (FIDA) Rivers State and Secretary, Nigerian Horticultural Society.
With her support, Odili entered politics and served as member and leader of Rivers State Delegates to the Constituent Assembly.
In 1992, while she was a High Court Judge, Odili was serving as the Deputy Governor of Rivers State.
In 1999, following her husband’s election as governor, Ukaego became the First Lady of Rivers State, serving until 29 May 2007.
She had held the offices of Justice, Court of Appeal, Abuja Division and Presiding Justice, Court of Appeal, Kaduna Division.
On 3 May 2011, President Jonathan nominated Ukaego with two other Appeal Court Justices to the Supreme Court.
In the new arrangement, she will represent the South East geo-political zone in the apex court bench.
In a letter to the Senate, Jonathan said their appointment was necessitated by the retirement from service of Justices Niki Tobi, I.F. Ogbuagu, J.O. Ogebe and G. A. Oguntade.
Ukaego was appointed an Associate justice of the Supreme Court of Nigeria (JSC) on 23 June 2011.