Judicial council recommends Pension thief judge, 2 other controversial judges for sack

Justice Talba, controversial pension plea bargain judge and two other judges have been recommended for compulsory retirement on ethical grounds.

The National Judicial Council in a on Wednesday  in Abuja  recommended the immediate compulsory retirement of three controversial judges . They are Justices  Abubakar Talba, Thomas Naron, and Charles Archibong.

The meeting which  was  presided over by the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Mariam Mukhtar, at the Supreme Court complex in Abuja, the NJC called for the immediate compulsory retirement of the judges on ethical grounds. The recommendations  are to be sent to President Goodluck Jonathan  for approval.

Justice  Talba was the judge who sentenced a self confessed pension thief, Yakubu Yusufu, to two years in prison each on a three-count charge with an option of fine of N250, 000 on each charge.

Mr. Yusufu had pleaded guilty to stealing N2 billion of about N30 billion he was charged with by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC. He promptly paid the fine and was set free though later arrested and tried on another charge by the commission.

EFCC accuse  Talba of  reneging  on a verbal agreement it had with the Yusufu and the judge that the convict be jailed without an option of fine.

Justice Naron, was investigated by the NJC for the scandalous ruling he led three other judges to give as the first election petition tribunal in Osun State after the  general 2007 elections.

Mr. Naron and the other judges were accused of being  compromised by Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, government of the then governor, Olagunsoye Oyinlola.

Call records later showed that Mr. Naron and Mr. Oyinlola’s lawyer, Kunle Kaleijaye, were having secret discussions prior to the controversial ruling.

Mr. Oyinlola was to later be sacked by the Court of Appeal.

Mr. Kalejaiye, a lawyer and Senior Advocate of Nigeria has been reported by the NJC  to the Nigeria Bar Association for punishment for his role in the scandal.

Justice Archibong the third of the Justices recommended for retirement  presided over the case of Erastus Akingbola in a manner the council deems scandalous.