Not less than 34 lawyers nominated for appointment to the Bench of the Federal High Court have failed the integrity test for appointment as judicial officers in Nigeria and have been dropped from the race.
The integrity test is part of the new guidelines approved by the National Judicial Council (NJC) under the leadership of the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekun, to eliminate persons of doubtful character from being appointed as judicial officers.
The 34 legal practitioners are part of the 62 applicants nominated for the Bench of the Federal High Court but were disqualified following various petitions against them during the integrity test.
Consequently, dependable sources at the NJC revealed that only 28 applicants who received a clean bill of health during the integrity screening will now face the Council’s interview panel, scheduled for next month.
A source told our correspondent that the 62 applicants had earlier passed the Computer-Based Test (CBT) examination conducted by the Federal High Court, after which their names were forwarded to the Federal Judicial Service Commission (FJSC).
However, in line with laid-down procedures, the FJSC applied the integrity test policy endorsed by the current CJN, Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekun, by inviting public feedback on the nominees through the publication of their names.
The publication of the nominees’ names on September 17, 2025, invited members of the public to submit feedback on the integrity, reputation, and suitability of the candidates for judicial appointment.
In one of the petitions received, a female nominee was accused of obtaining bribes in the discharge of her official duties and was subsequently referred to the Police Service Commission (PSC) for investigation.
At the conclusion of the investigation, the PSC established that the female nominee indeed demanded and received a ₦1 million bribe in the course of a court matter that passed through her office.
Armed with the established facts from the petition written by a lawyer against the female nominee and several others, the FJSC upheld the nomination of only 28 candidates, forwarded their names to the NJC, and dropped the remaining 34 for failing to scale the integrity test.
The NJC source disclosed that the 28 shortlisted nominees would be presented to the Council at its meeting scheduled for January 2026.
The nominees are expected to face the NJC interview panel days before the main meeting, which the source said would hold in the second week of next month.
When contacted for comments, Kemi Babalola Ogedengbe, Deputy Director of Information at the NJC, confirmed that the Council would meet between January 13 and 14, 2025, to consider issues relating to the appointment process of the shortlisted candidates as judges of the Federal High Court.
According to her, the 28 shortlisted nominees will face the Council’s interview panel days before the meeting, possibly on Monday and Tuesday, while the Council meeting will hold on Wednesday and Thursday.
The NJC spokesperson, who declined to comment on the petitions against some nominees, insisted that the Council remains fully determined not to lower the entry bar, regardless of who is involved.
“You are all aware, like the general public, that transparency and judicial integrity remain top priorities for the Kekere-Ekun-led administration. There is no going back on that. Merit is the only factor that will come into play during the interview, and only those found suitable will have their way,” she said.
