The National Judicial Council last night renewed the appointment of Justice Zainab Bulkachuwa as the Acting President of the Court of Appeal for another three months.
Under the law, her appointment was to expire on Friday this week.
The renewal of Bulkachuwa’s appointment formed part of the major decisions taken by the NJC, at its meeting presided over by the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Aloma Muktar.
The NJC also recommended the immediate and compulsory retirement from the bench of three judges who have been under its radar for corruption-related and controversial verdicts that have tended to ridicule the Nigerian judiciary in recent times.
The affected judges are: Abubakar Talba, Charles Archibong and Thomas Naron.
It was learnt that Archibong was penalised for his role in the case against former Managing Director of Intercontinental Bank, Erastus Akingbola, while Talba, it would be recalled, was the judge that handed self-confessed pension thief, John Yusufu a slap on the wrist that led to protests and subsequent rearrest of the suspect by the EFCC. Talba was also involved in the controversial bail granted a woman who allegedly killed her husband for taking another wife.
Naron on the other hand is said to be facing the tough disciplinary action of the judicial body because of his implication in the Osun Election Petition Tribunal of 2007. The embattled judge is believed to have been compromised by some politicians to give a ruling in their favour but that was later reversed by the Appeal Court; a landmark judgement that paved the way for the emergence of the current governor, Rauf Aregbesola.
