By Aguiyi Joseph Obinna
In a courtesy visit to the Wole Soyinka Centre for Investigative Journalism in Ilorin on Tuesday, retired President of the Court of Appeal, Justice Isa Ayo Salami, unleashed yet another round of unverified political commentary that has once again exposed his fatally flawed character. According to the Vanguard report, Salami declared that Peter Obi “ought not have been allowed to contest the 2023 presidential election” because, in his words, “by the time he lost the PDP primary, LP had submitted its list of members to INEC” and the Constitution forbids independent candidacy.
He drew a parallel with Kano Governor Abba Yusuf and blamed “incompetence” and “bad eggs” among judges for these “wrong verdicts.” This is not the sober reflection of a retired jurist; it is the reckless rant of a man who has repeatedly been shown the door by the same judiciary he now seeks to ridicule, only to be pitied back into relevance.
Let us first trace and dismantle the veracity of Salami’s central claim, which is demonstrably false. Peter Obi resigned his membership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and withdrew from its presidential primary well before the Labour Party (LP) conducted its own convention on 30 May 2022. He formally joined the Labour Party and was duly nominated as its presidential candidate at that convention. INEC accepted the nomination, published Obi’s name on the final list of candidates, and the electoral process proceeded without any pre-election disqualification on grounds of non-membership. Section 131(c) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) requires only that a presidential candidate “is a member of a political party and is sponsored by that political party.” It does not prohibit cross-party movement within the lawful timelines prescribed by the Electoral Act 2022.
Salami’s assertion that the LP had already submitted its membership register before Obi “lost the PDP primary” is both chronologically inaccurate and legally irrelevant. Obi did not “lose” any PDP primary; he exited the party before the PDP convention held on 28-29 May 2022. The Labour Party’s register submission on 25 April 2022 did not freeze membership; parties are entitled to update their records and INEC validated the nomination. No court, tribunal, or INEC ever disqualified Obi on this ground. The claim is a pure fabrication, peddled to manufacture judicial failure where none existed.
The same falsehood underpins Salami’s reference to Governor Abba Yusuf. The Supreme Court, in its considered wisdom, upheld Yusuf’s election after examining the facts, the party’s constitution, and the Electoral Act. That the tribunal and Court of Appeal had earlier expressed reservations does not render the apex court’s decision “incompetent.” It is the very essence of our hierarchical judicial system that the Supreme Court has the final say. Salami’s selective outrage ignores this basic principle while conveniently forgetting that he himself benefited from the same system he now disparages.
Justice Salami is no stranger to judicial discipline. In 2011, the National Judicial Council (NJC) suspended him as President of the Court of Appeal for misconduct bordering on insubordination and breach of the Code of Conduct for Judicial Officers. President Goodluck Jonathan approved the recommendation for his compulsory retirement. The suspension was not the act of a “witch-hunt” but a necessary response to his refusal to apologise for publicly undermining the Chief Justice of Nigeria. Yet, rather than exit gracefully, Salami was later reabsorbed into public life through pity and political patronage. He returned, not as a reformed sage, but as the same disruptive force, now retired yet still dispensing unsolicited and uninformed opinions on matters far beyond his current remit.
This is not senility; it is the hallmark of an ultracrepidarian — one who pontificates authoritatively on subjects outside his competence. Worse, Salami’s interventions reveal a deep-seated bigotry and ethnic bias. His targeting of Peter Obi, an Igbo leader who enjoys massive support in the Southeast and beyond, while glossing over similar issues involving candidates from other zones, fits a pattern of selective indignation that has long tainted his public utterances. His veiled attacks on “promotion without regard to excellence” and “zoning” further expose corrupt biases that prioritise sectional interest over merit.
By issuing such unverified claims, Salami does more than embarrass himself; he triggers national anxiety and mocks the very judiciary he once served. His statement risks inflaming ethnic tensions and eroding public confidence in democratic institutions at a time when Nigeria needs healing, not division. Retired judges owe the nation restraint. They are not political commentators licensed to incite crisis or cast aspersions on serving judges who, unlike Salami, still bear the burden of daily adjudication under the 2022 Electoral Act.
The judiciary is not perfect, but it is not the incompetent circus Salami paints. The same Supreme Court he criticises has, over decades, upheld constitutional order even when unpopular. Salami’s own history of suspension, reinstatement through pity, and subsequent nuisance proves that the real “bad egg” is the one who refuses to learn from his past. He must desist forthwith from rumours, half-truths, and political grandstanding. The cadre of present-day judges deserves respect, not ridicule from a man whose own judicial career was twice terminated and twice pitied back into relevance.
The nation watched the 2023 election; INEC, the tribunals, the
Court of Appeal, and the Supreme Court all performed their constitutional
roles. Peter Obi contested lawfully under the Labour Party flag. To suggest
otherwise is not judicial critique; it is deliberate falsehood wrapped in the
faded robes of a man who should have long retired into dignified silence.
Justice Salami, enough is enough. The judiciary and the Nigerian people demand
better from you.
*Barr Obinna is a commentator on public issues
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