Ex-CJN Ibrahim Muhammad Dies at 71, NJC Mourns

Alex Enumah in Abuja

Former Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Ibrahim Tanko Muhammad, is dead. He died on Tuesday at 71.

Late Justice Muhammad was said to have died outside the country.

The National Judicial Council (NJC) has commiserated with the family of the former CJN.

Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekun, in a statement observed that the former CJN would be remembered for his good works while on earth.

The statement signed by the NJC’s Secretary, Ahmed Saleh, also observed that the late CJN died few days to his 72nd birthday.

According to Saleh, “His Lordship expressed deep condolences to the family and the people of Bauchi State over the death of the former Chief Justice of Nigeria and Chairman of the National Judicial Council.“Although death is a painful reality, we are nevertheless consoled by the fact that His Lordship left a legacy of handwork, honesty and dedication to work.

“The late Justice Ibrahim Tanko Muhammad, who would have been 72 years by December 31, 2025, was a devout Muslim, a respected Jurist, who was courageous with exemplified highest ideals of the Bench”.

The statement added that late Justice Muhammad served as the Justice of the Supreme Court of Nigeria from 2006 to 2022 and as the Chief Justice of Nigeria from 2019 until his resignation in June 2022 on ground of ill-health.

The late CJN began his career in 1982, after he was called to the bar in 1981, the same year he graduated from the Nigerian Law School.

He was appointed as Chief Magistrate of the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory in 1989, a position he held until 1991 when he became a Judge at the Bauchi State Sharia Court of Appeal.

He served in that capacity for two years before he was appointed to the Bench of the Court of Appeal in 1993.

“On behalf of the entire Judiciary, and Chairman, National Judicial Council, Justice Kekere-Ekun, condole with President Bola Tinubu, the people and Government of Bauchi State, the immediate family of the late former CJN, the Nigerian Judiciary and the entire Legal Community, I pray Almighty Allah to grant His Lordship and the rest members of his family, the fortitude to bear the irreparable loss. Amen”, Saleh prayed.